In Def(iance)ense of Destiny
by Jcani
Summary: (Formerly known as "The Pugilist") Humans had once lived in the same world as Ponies but because of their violent nature, they were exiled. However, one human has returned, and his very existence now threatens Ponykind. Will Twilight, together with the power of the Elements of Harmony, be able to stop him? Or will the ponies have to find help in the most ironic form? (A HiE fic)
1. Chapter 1

**AN: For those who have been reading "The Pugilist" consider this the remake of that story. I couldn't justify merely updating "The Pugilist" since it's not really the same story, although it shares many plot points, chapters, and characters. I'm sorry it's not any good considering how long I made you guys wait but I can only hope my writing gets better as this story goes on.**

* * *

_How long. How long. How long has it been?!_ A wretched human being, floating within the vastness of nothingness screamed inside his mind. A century? A millennium? For eternity. He seemed to be nothing but skin and bones covered in a ragged crimson robe. He was auburn-haired, and possessed a light, but full beard, connecting to his thick mustache. His freckled complexion took on a greyish hue, as if he was just a corpse withering away within the void.

But there was more going on than what appeared. Sustaining himself on the magical energies the void possessed he lived, and as he lived, he hoarded, storing the energies of the void within himself as he hoped that one day, he would have enough power to tear open a rip in space and finally free himself from this hell.

He had wanted to release his magical energy on many occasions, but what little sanity he had left told him to be patient and wait, for if he hadn't enough energy, nothing would happen, and he would be forced to start over. So he waited. And waited. And waited. And waited…

_And I can't wait anymore! _

Suddenly coming to life, the corpse-like body stretched its limbs to their fullest extent and was engulfed in a bright white light as it released the energy stored within. A violent eruption was heard as the very fabric of space was torn.

He opened his eyes, hoping, praying, to once again see the world, the incandescently beaming sun, and the deep azure of the morning sky. On the contrary, all he saw was darkness, and despair began to take hold of him. After all the time he waited, storing his energy, was it all for nothing? Is he forced to start over, or was he better off dying? Unable to cope with what had just transpired, he thrashed madly at the ground. _Wait. The ground?_

He was on his hands and knees, his fingers digging into the dirt, pulling out blades of grass, their roots clinging to clumps of soil as he held them in front of his face. He gazed up at the blackness he was regarding at earlier, and found that it wasn't the emptiness of the void he was looking at, but the darkness of the night sky, the radiance from the moon and the stars obscured by a large cloud that had just begun to move away.

For the first time in a long time he looked upon lights, and the luminescence of the nightly celestial bodies made his lips quiver and brought forth a tear from the corner of his eye. He then shot up to his feet, and began running around the open grass field he was in, laughing jubilantly as he frolicked nonsensically. His frivolity was interrupted when he stumbled into a small grass-filled crater. After crawling out, he surveyed the landscape to the best of his ability under the dim starlight. The field was littered with craters much like the one he had stumbled into, and gave him an eerie feeling of a battlefield.

His eyes then widened as he begun to remember. An eternity in the void had disheveled his mental fortitude, but he was no ordinary person. He was strong in mind, and as the memories came flooding back a smolder of anger began to fizzle inside of him. He now remembered everything, what had happened in the field, what had happened to his society, and how he came to be tossed into the void.

With a daggered glare, gritted teeth, and tightly curled fists, he stomped off the field purposefully. There was work to be done.

* * *

Filled with a small amount of curiosity and wonder, mixed in with a heavy dose of boredom, Twilight Sparkle, recently appointed princess of Equestria , had begun to look through all the scrolls and books within the Star Swirl the Bearded wing of the Canterlot Archives. Using her magic, she pulled out several scrolls, her eyes scanning each one as she read each of their enchantments.

_Temporary duplication spell? Fascinating! See through vision? A little creepy. Onion sulfur resistance? How practical! Momentary pony to human transformation spell for the non-unicorns? Human? What in Equestria is a human? _

Twilight peered at the scroll with a scrutinizing look, her hoof on her chin. "I don't seem to recall seeing or hearing anything about, how do I say it, 'huh-mans' in my studies. Perhaps it's a species of animal Star Swirl discovered? Maybe I could ask the princesses about it."

She put away the other scrolls and books she had pulled out and tucked the transformation spell beneath a wing. After walking out of the Star Swirl Archives and closing the gate behind her she trotted cheerfully out into the garden, on the way to the castle, humming a merry tune. She walked by a group of armored guards who stood stiff in place and bowed their heads militaristically.

"At ease boys," she said with a giggle as she passed them by. Once she was in the castle courtyard, she let go of the scroll from her wing and levitated it beside her. She then spread her wings wide and flew over the steps leading into the castle. "Ah, wings. I might never have to walk up a flight of stairs again!"

When asked for the princesses' whereabouts, a guard pointed her towards the throne room. Walking down the hall that led to the throne room, Twilight Sparkle took the time to marvel at the stained glass art that depicted Equestria's recent epic moments. The defeat of Nightmare Moon, the rediscovery of the Elements of Harmony, and the return of Princess Luna; The return and their triumph over Discord; the discovery of the power of love that led to the over-turning of an evil queen's plans; the reemergence of the Crystal Empire and the usage of hope to vanquish a tyrant king; and lastly Twilight Sparkle's princess coronation, all of which she passed by as she neared the entrance to the throne room.

As she entered, she overheard Princess Celestia and Princess Luna conversing in nearly frantic and hushed tones.

"But sister, escaping from the void is no mere task, he must be weak, this is an advantage we _must _exploit." Though Twilight couldn't make out exactly what the two were speaking of, there was a degree of urgency in Luna's voice that unnerved Twilight, motivating her to slowly back out of the room. Celestia had already seen her from the corner of her eye, and beckoned Twilight to approach.

"Good morning _Princess_ Twilight." Princess Celestia gave a playful emphasis on Twilight's title, provoking a shade of red to color Twilight's cheeks. "What prompts you to seek us out so early in the day?"

Twilight hesitated slightly, not entirely sure she wanted to be intruding a seemingly imperative conversation over something so inconsequential. Celestia made an imploring nodding gesture that compelled Twilight to speak.

"I'm so sorry if I interrupted anything but I was just looking through some of Star Swirls old spell scrolls and came across a word I didn't know. A 'huh-man'? Or is it 'hoo-man'?"

Luna and Celestia exchanged brief glances. "Um, do you mean 'human' Twilight Sparkle?" Luna clarified, looking back at Twilight.

"Is that how it's pronounced? What is it exactly, a type of bird?"

Princess Celestia and Luna exchanged glances once more. "Considering the circumstances, it would be best if we told her now," Luna suggested. Celestia nodded and faced her student.

"Twilight Sparkle, there's some information that Luna and I have failed to make privy to you. This is information we would have preferred never to be heard of again but considering what had just transpired, we are left with no choice…"

Twilight looked at her mentor with a raised eyebrow, not entirely sure what Princess Celestia was getting at. "Just because I found this scroll? If you don't want to tell me you don't have to."

Princess Luna shook her head. "You would be correct in assuming that what we are about to relay to you is concerning humans, however it is not because you discovered that spell scroll, rather…"

"It is because something had happened in the old land," Celestia completed, picking up where Luna left off.

"You mean the land ruined by the Wendigo's winter?"

Celestia made a pleased nod. "That is correct, Twilight, though prior to that incident, something else had happened."

At this point, Luna took the lead. "A great and terrible war was waged between pony-kind and these beings we call 'humans'." She channeled a small amount of magical energy to her horn and from the tip emerged a small cloud of sparkling energy, slowly swirling into a thick and reflective mist, depicting the image of two bipedal beings dressed in robes. One was masculine and the other feminine.

"This is an example of what humans look like," Celestia said, gesturing towards the image. "I would approximate they ceased to exist in this world, oh, three thousand years ago?"

"About two thousand years prior to my banishment on the moon, yes," Princess Luna agreed. Though Twilight already knew the Princesses were at least over a thousand years old, finding out they were over three thousand was certainly news to her, but it wasn't what made her jaw drop.

"Wait a second," Twilight implored, "you mean to tell me these humans became extinct? Just how devastating was this war?"

"Nearly catastrophic," Celestia answered, "though not the cause of their disappearance. The male portion of the human population had been ravaged by war, leaving behind mostly women and children. The council of sentient creatures that had existed back then deemed humans too dangerous to remain in this world and feared reprisal from the remaining population, and so had Star Swirl the Bearded find a place to exile them to. He scanned the universe with his mind and found a planet, a healthy planet, one capable of sustaining life.

Surprisingly, on that planet was already a thriving human population, with nary any other sentient life form competing with them. He disseminated the remaining human population of this world onto that planet, carefully placing them in societies where they were sure to fit in, whilst distributing them evenly as to not upset any order and give cause for notice. Afterwards, we destroyed any documentation of humans ever existing."

"Well, apparently, we missed one," Luna chimed in, gesturing towards the scroll Twilight held.

Twilight shook her head disbelievingly. "But I don't understand. What was the cause of this war? Why couldn't diplomatic measures be reached?"

The sisters exchanged wary glances once more. "The actual cause of the war is… confusing at best," Luna explained. "But by the nature of humans, a war between us and them did seem inevitable."

Twilight cocked her head to the side, not exactly understanding what Luna implied.

"Humans, unlike ponies, are beings untouched by destiny," Luna explained. "As we have Cutie Marks to determine what makes us special, and essentially define what we shall be in life, humans don't. This allows humans to choose what they wish to be and achieve."

Twilight looked at Luna quizzically. "That… actually sounds pretty good. What's wrong with that?"

"This freedom allows for ambition," Celestia elaborated. "On the positive side, this ambition created many inventions and architectural achievements that humans had accomplished by working together. But ambition too has a dark side. This ambition promoted a competitive instinct within them, and made them violent. Differing human societies and tribes would often wage war against each other. It took centuries but finally, humanity was united under one banner. They no longer fought with each other but-"

"They began to fight against other sentients…" Twilight completed, finally understanding the nature of humans.

Celestia nodded at Twilight's summation.

"But," Twilight went on, "there are other beings that do not possess Cutie Marks, why are humans the only ones so violent?"

"Some sentient species such as cows and mules know their place in this world. Others such as minotaurs and dragons couldn't care less what their purpose is. But humans, with behaviors so similar to us ponies, desire to have a purpose, thereby making one themselves, but without destiny to properly guide them, the finding of one's purpose often leads to the suffering of another." Princess Luna ended her spell, the image of the two humans dissipating.

"So what happened in the old land that made you two tell me what a human is?" Twilight asked. Princess Celestia walked towards a nearby window, her eyes peering far off into the distance.

"One human has returned. Unlike the others who had either been killed or exiled to the other planet, this one had been tossed into the void. It was during the final confrontation, when we were pushing into their final city in order to prevent them from using a magical weapon of mass destruction, when Star Swirl, Luna, and I confronted him. His name was Baade and he was the best combat magician that had ever existed. In terms of raw magical power, each one of us matched him equally, but in terms of skill and combat capabilities, he was superior.

Even with all three of us, we struggled to defeat him and Star Swirl was forced to use a spell to tear open a rip in space, sucking Baade into the void. While a spell exists to tear the fabric of space from our realm, no spell exists that could do the same from the void, and no pony or human ever wanted to try it. It has been theorized that perhaps an individual could harness the power within the void and release it all simultaneously to reopen the fabric, but we had never thought Baade would actually do so. We were proven wrong hours ago when we sensed a large influx of magical energy from the old land. There could be no other explanation as to what caused it."

"But three thousand years in what is essentially nothing but magical energy," Twilight pointed out, "would he even be lucid?"

"You shouldn't underestimate his mental resilience," Princess Luna warned. "But yes, you do make a good point. Three thousand years of blackness does not do one good which is why," Luna redirected her attention to Celestia, continuing the conversation she and her sister were having earlier, "we must act now. We cannot allow for Baade to have any more recovery time than he already has received."

Princess Celestia bit into her bottom lip. "Baade's talents still continue to haunt my memories, but yes, perhaps you are right Luna, we may not get a better opportunity than this." Princess Celestia then turned towards Twilight, conviction deeply set into her eyes. "Twilight Sparkle, gather your friends and the Elements of Harmony here right away. I will warn Princess Cadence and Shining Armor to be wary of any danger should the worst happen and to have them do their best in not only defending the Crystal Empire but Equestria as well."

"I'll have Discord come along as well," Princess Luna added before walking out of the throne room. Celestia nodded and approached Twilight, placing a hoof on her shoulder.

"Steel yourself my student. You have overcome many challenges but should Baade be ready and willing to fight, be sure that it may be one of the most difficult encounters we may have to face."

Twilight swallowed hard and nodded, before spreading her wings and taking off out of a conveniently placed hole in the roof. When Twilight left and Celestia was alone, she returned to looking out the window, her eyes glistening and her lips pressed tightly together.

_Baade…_

* * *

_Scritch. _The sound of old, worn out springs within the boundaries of a dirty, overused mattress echoed quietly within the confines of a six by eight jail cell. Lying down upon that mattress, on a shelf attached to the wall and held up by chains, was an Asian-American man, somewhere in his early twenties, his cold and hardened gaze staring up at the ceiling with disinterest. His fingers were laced behind his head, serving as a make-shift pillow.

He had dull black hair which was cut into a stylized tussle, a thin mustache, and a patchy goatee. Positioned delicately on his chest was a pair of rectangular glasses, placed on top of an ominous red stain that tarnished what would have otherwise been a very nice white dress shirt. The dress shirt was adorned with a plain blue tie and was half tucked into a pair of grey slacks. The belt that ran through the belt loops of the slacks was lazily undone. Covering the man's feet was a pair of black socks, the left one bearing a hole on the bottom of the big toe.

"Jessie."

The man lifted his head up upon hearing his name, seeing a dark-skinned woman in her late thirties with brown hair standing outside his cell, dressed in a pantsuit. The frown lines on her face ran deep into her skin, as if all she has ever heard was bad news. Clutched in her hand was a newspaper, folded twice over.

"Chief Santos."

Chief Santos stepped closer to the cell, prompting Jessie to sit up on his bed, placing the glasses on his face as he did so.

"Are you feeling better now?"

Rather than answering, Jessie ran up to the cell bars, clenched a bar in each hand, and looked at Chief Santos in the eyes. "Chief, you gotta believe me. _They _started it. I never meant to-"

"Detective," the Chief interrupted, immediately getting silence from Jessie, "before you say anything you might regret," at this point the chief began to whisper, "know that it is not in any of our interests to see you locked away."

"What's going to happen to me?" Jessie asked, making sure to follow the chief's lead and whisper .

Chief Santos shifted her eyes to the right and left and leaned in closer to Jessie, giving him the sense she was giving him information his wasn't privy to hear. "The FBI had sent an… inquiry. Considering we were working with them on this case I'm not surprised that they might have a few questions as to how the situation with the suspects was handled."

"Like I said, _they _started it. There was nothing wrong with-"

Chief Santos raised a hand for silence. "Jessie, just what were you doing there in the first place?"

Jessie let out a long, drawn out sigh. "I… I dunno, I just couldn't let them leave. Not like that."

"So what you did, that was intended all along?"

The moment chief Santos finished voicing her question, an air of intensity enveloped Jessie, his grip on the cell bars tightened and he shot a glare at the Chief that prompted her to gasp and step back from the cell. His glower seemed to warp the bars that separated Chief Santos and he, for a creaking sound was heard as the bars in his hands seemed to bend.

"Jessie," Chief Santos voiced out carefully, making sure to sound as soothing as she could, "I didn't mean to sound like I was interrogating you."

"Straight into the Reid method, old habits die hard, huh?" Jessie scowled at her accusingly, his expression unnerving his superior.

"Jessie, _please_," she continued, "I'm just trying to understand what you were thinking. Just _how _exactly were you going to stop them?"

"I don't know!" Jessie yelled as he relinquished his grip on the bars, which were now clearly bent. He stalked to the back of his cell, running his fingers through his hair. "It's just- I just… I've _seen _things Chief! Done things! Things that I'm not proud of! Things that make me hate myself! All supposedly for the greater good! And those men, those twisted fucking assholes, I'm supposed to let them go? Fuck that!" Jessie threw his fist into the back wall ending his rant with a decisive _thump_. He then turned back to the chief, leaning against the wall, exhausted. "Do you have your answer now?"

"I see now," Chief Santos replied, prompting a raised eyebrow from Jessie. "It was all Longwei's doing."

"Longwei," Jessie said, his voice dripping with spite, "I hate that guy."

"You and I both," The chief agreed. She pulled out a ring of keys, catching Jessie's eye, and selected one, putting it into the cell door's keyhole, and pulling the door open.

"Chief?"

"As I said before, it wasn't in anyone's interests to see you locked up."

Jessie approached the exit to his cell apprehensively, giving Chief Santos a wary glance. "It can't be this easy."

"You shouldn't be taking the fall for something Longwei did. But yes, you're right, it's not as simple as this."

"What's the catch?"

"Your jacket and shoes are at the front," she said, ignoring his question.

Jessie was now more uneasy than before. "And my badge?"

The chief replied by merely shaking her head, giving Jessie all he needed to know.

"I see…"

An unpaid vacation was what Jessie thought of it as he drove northbound on Marine Corps Drive. He viewed the plethora of "massage parlors" along the roadside, knowing full well what actual activity was taking place within, and grimaced in disgust. At a red stoplight, in an attempt to get his mind off things, he reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet. From the wallet, he took out a wallet-sized photo of a young girl, around seven years old, and placed it on his dashboard. She had golden blonde hair with locks that would curl slightly in the end, a dimpled smile, and a set of deep amber eyes. In the picture, she was dressed in a pink long sleeved top and wearing a pair of loose-fitting polka-dotted bottoms.

It was his younger sister Tiff, and after a year, he was glad to be able to see her again. She was placed in temporary foster care at the start of Jessie's undercover investigation, their parents being out of the picture, and Jessie had hoped that within the one year they spent apart she wouldn't have grown too attached to her foster family or too distant from him.

The age difference between them was quite staggering, and there were times when people would mistake him as her sitter, at times a bodyguard for a rich caucasian family, or in a few cases, her father.

The traffic light turned green and Jessie continued on his way. He turned into a suburban neighborhood, though one could barely call it that, as chickens fluttered about on the road, fallen brown coconut tree leaves littered the sidewalks, and a man pulling a Carabao, the local name for a type of water buffalo, waved to Jessie as he drove by, giving the neighborhood a quaint rural feel.

Jessie turned into a cul-de-sac, parking his vehicle right in front of a simple single story house. It was a humble white house with a brick-red roof.

Home sweet home.

Though the building was small, the property was somewhat spacious, with a sizable front yard and a bigger one in the back. One of the neighbor's mango trees crept over the side of the fence, "invading" his property, though he and the neighbor had an unspoken agreement that if he didn't bring it up, Jessie was more than welcome to help himself to the mango fruit dangling over his side of the fence.

Jessie got out of his car and opened the gate, stepping unto an unkempt lawn that desperately needed to be mowed. Walking towards the house, he spied two sets of footwear right outside the front entrance. A pair of pink Hello Kitty strap-on shoes and a pair of worn out black dress shoes. Jessie reached for the screen door, but then stopped himself, realizing the bloodstains on his shirt could be seen. He buttoned his jacket; pulled open the screen door, pushed open the wooden door, and stepped into the house, closing both doors behind him.

There, sitting on plush recliner in the living room, craning her neck as she looked over her shoulder and staring at him with large tearful eyes, was Tiff. Jessie barely had time to say hello before she hopped out of the recliner and ran to him. He got down to one knee just in time for her to bury herself into his chest, pressing her face against his shoulder and wrapping her arms around his neck. He placed a hand on the back of her head and on her back, holding her close to him.

"It's great to see you again Tiff," he said. She pulled away from him slightly, looking up at him with watery eyes and a slightly pouty lip. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"You missed it."

Jessie raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Hm, missed what?"

She pointed at the television that was turned on. He looked over and saw that it was on The Hub channel and it suddenly dawned on him.

"Ooohhh," he realized, "that's right, My Little Pony was on, wasn't it? I almost forgot about that show."

"How could you forget?!" Tiff asked incredulously. "It's our favorite TV show!"

_Ours, huh…_

"I'm sure your brother needs time readjust to his old life." A man in in a black clerical shirt adorned with a roman collar tucked into a pair of matching black slacks emerged from the hallway. "I understand that undercover work is quite taxing and one would often forget the things they used to enjoy."

"Father Gumataotao, a pleasure," Jessie got up and walked over to the priest, presenting his hand which Father Gumataotao took into his firmly, and shook.

"I was just using your bathroom," Father Gumataotao pointed over his shoulder with his thumb, "I hope you don't mind."

"It's quite alright Father," Jessie assured him. "So what're you doing here? Not trying to guilt me into going back to church are you?"

Father Gumataotao laughed heartily and patted Jessie on the shoulder. "I'm here to do nothing of the sort, although it would be a pleasant surprise. I just picked up Tiff from the San Vitores family and brought her over here, assuming you'd like to see Tiff as soon as possible."

"I appreciate the gesture Father," Jessie lowered his head humbly, "and I would like to give my thanks to the San Vitores family for watching over Tiff. Was there any financial problems or-"

Father Gumataotao raised a hand, silencing Jessie. "There's no need to worry about anything like that. The San Vitores family is more than happy to accommodate astounding members of the community such as you. I'll be taking my leave now, but if you could see me out?"

Jessie nodded and followed Father Gumataotao out the doorway. Once he had his shoes on, Father Gumataotao looked over their shoulders, making sure Tiff was out of earshot, before leaning in closer to Jessie, whispering into his ear. "I understand you had to go through some… things. If you find yourself in need of absolution-"

"Father, you know I don't-"

"Know that I am always ready to listen," Father Gumataotao went on. Jessie sighed, and nodded politely.

"Thank you, father, I'll keep that in mind."

Father Gumataotao patted Jessie on the shoulders in goodbye before walking out the gates. He then stopped in place and turned back to Jessie. "One last thing, try to lighten up, you look a little mean." With that, Father Gumataotao turned back around, waving at Jessie with the back of his hand.

Jessie sighed once more and let out a small shudder he was retaining, hardly feeling comfortable around members of the clergy. Kicking off his shoes, he went back into the house. He heard sounds coming from the kitchen area, and there found Tiff standing on a small stool as she poured pancake batter onto a frying pan.

"Tiff, what're you doing? That's dangerous." Jessie walked up to Tiff and attempted to carry her off the stool and away from the stovetop, though she had wriggled out of his arms.

"It's okay; Mrs. San Vitores taught me everything! Also, are you gonna be going back to work?"

Jessie shook his head. "No, I'm… I'm going to be on a really long vacation now."

"Yes!" Tiff had leaped off the stool in excitement, barely giving Jessie enough time to catch her. Within his arms, Tiff looked peculiarly at his torso. "What's wrong with your shirt?"

"I'm gonna go change." Jessie quickly avoided the subject, put Tiff down, and walked off hurriedly down the hall, loosening his tie as he did. Once he arrived at his room, he shut the door and turned the lock, breathing a sigh of relief as he wiped the sweat off his brow. He looked around and, momentarily stunned by the unfamiliarity with it all, placed his back against the door and slowly slid down in disbelief.

The walls were heavily decorated with a plethora of video game and anime posters, the top of his dresser, which had an mirror mounted on the wall above it, was covered by various figurines, and a small television was present in the corner of the room, flanked by an Xbox 360 and a PS3. In the opposite corner was a computer table, with a high resolution monitor on top, a lit wide-spaced keyboard in the pullout, and a bulky high-end pc in the housing below. Jessie stood up and took it all in.

The room contrasted immensely with the type of person Jessie would have claimed he was mere days ago. He had changed, and the uncomfortable feeling he had standing in his own room, furnished in a manner he wanted it to be in, was proof of that.

Jessie took off his jacket and threw it on the bed, followed shortly by his tie. He walked over to his dresser and looked into the mirror, pursing his lips disdainfully at the blood splatter on his shirt.

No way that's gonna come out. He then peered at himself in the mirror. I wonder what Father Gumataotao meant by me "looking mean". Jessie noticed a slight furrow in his brow, indeed giving him a "mean" and almost unapproachable appearance. Thankfully, Tiff didn't seem to notice, though Jessie was slightly disturbed. He then looked into his own eyes and within a blink's moment sensed the metallic odor of blood in his sinuses, the adrenaline of a life and death situation coursing through his veins, and the cries and the begging and the pleading of people echoing within his mind.

"Shit…" Jessie lightly massaged his temple with his middle finger as he felt a sudden pang in his head. Looking at his reflection now, Jessie felt a strong urge to bring down the mirror. He looked away and unbuttoned his shirt, taking it off, pulling out a plain white tee from the top drawer of his dresser and pulled it over his head. The smell of pancakes caught his nose, and Jessie, quite eagerly, left his room.

A large stack of flapjacks was waiting for him on the kitchen counter, heavily laden with syrup and topped by a thin slice of butter. Tiff handed him a fork and a knife and Jessie cut into the stack, placing three triangular layers of pancake into his mouth.

"Mm, dis sduff ish gud." Jessie cut a larger, thicker slice, and stuffed it into his mouth.

"So Jess, what happened when you were working, did you get to do anything cool?" Tiff beamed up at him, eager to hear the kinds of stories he might have. Jessie swallowed the mouthful of pancake, and made a motion indicating he would like something to drink. As Tiff rushed over to the kitchen, Jessie used the time to try and come up with something. She came back faster than expected, holding a glass of milk. Once the glass was handed to him, he drank it slowly and when he lowered it, to his dismay, saw Tiff still sitting across from him, smiling innocently, and giggling lightly at his milk-soaked mustache.

He wiped away the milk and exhaled heavily. "Um… do you know what it means to be 'undercover'?"

"Means you spy on people of course, silly!" she answered a-matter-of-factly.

That wasn't the true definition of course, but for the moment it was better for Tiff to think that way. "Uh yeah, I spied on people. It's actually not as exciting as you expected, most of the time they weren't really doing anything. But in the end, its important for you to know that…" A small twang of guilt resonated within Jessie, but there was no way he could tell Tiff what he actually happened. "…They won't be hurting anyone anymore." He tousled her hair and she looked back up to him with questioning eyes.

"What is it this time?" he asked.

"Remember what you said last year?"

"Um…"

Tiff frowned and walked away from him, walking towards a set of drawers next to the television. She pulled open the bottommost drawer and took out two rectangular pieces of paper. Jessie walked up to her and retrieved the pieces of paper, and saw that they were airline tickets to San Diego.

"This is…"

"You said we were going to see a convention when you were done, remember?"

San Diego, huh? Maybe a change of scenery would help.

"Yeah, sure, I'm on vacation anyways, right?"

"Yes! I'm gonna go pack!" Tiff ran off down the hallway and towards her room.

"Packing? Already? I don't…" Jessie looked down at the tickets, his eyes widening when he saw the date their flight was scheduled. "Tomorrow?! Oh sh-"

* * *

Grim-faced and with guarded postures, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna stood upon a crater-filled field, with small hills dimpling its surface. Behind the royal duo were six mares, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Fluttershy, each one wearing their respective elements.

"I still dun git what in the hay's goin' on here," Applejack whispered to Rarity. Rarity, who had been using her magic to manipulate two knitting needles and a yarn ball, turned to Applejack, presenting her work.

"Look Applejack, I'm making a scarf, light green and purple, I think it would look absolutely wonderful on Spike."

Applejack eyed the sizeable scarf, looking as if it could wrap around the necks of five large stallions. "Uh, why's it so big?"

"You seem to be forgetting the massive growth spurt dear little Spike had in the last three weeks. Well, not so little anymore. It's still a tad over-sized, yes, but I'm sure he'll grow into it."

Applejack blinked at her a couple times before continuing. "Anyways, as I was sayin'. I dun care much fer bein' left in the dark. What in tarnation is goin' on exactly?"

Rarity flicked her mane with a hoof nonchalantly and shrugged. "Something about the last of an ancient species returning and being awfully good at magic, or something along those lines, I'm sure. And as per usual Twilight will cast a spell using the Elements of Harmony and the foe shall be overwhelmingly defeated."

The corner of Applejack's lips curled downwards. "Do ya really think it's gonna be that easy?"

"Well, I haven't seen any reason to worry. We're here, the princesses are here, and even Discord is here." Rarity pointed up towards Discord who was lying merrily on a pink cotton candy cloud that spewed forth its chocolate rain, most of which falling into the gaping abyss that is Pinkie Pie's mouth. "Quite honestly, we'll probably end up taking care of business as usual and then be on our way."

"Hey, did you hear about the Wonderbolts performance that's gonna be displayed during the Summer Sun Celebration in Cloudsdale this year?" Rainbow Dash whispered to Fluttershy. Fluttershy nodded and cautiously peeked at the princesses before addressing Rainbow Dash.

"I heard it's going to be quite stellar, but perhaps now isn't the time to talk about it…"

"Don't be such a 'fraidy pony," Rainbow Dash teased. "Something big and bad is gonna come by, Twilight's gonna stop it, and we're going to be treated as heroes like always. Anyways, I've heard the Wonderbolts came up with this new trick involving storm clouds and tornadoes!"

"Oh my, that sounds quite dangerous."

"Hey Discord!" Pinkie Pie called up at the chimera lying lazily upon the cloud of cotton pink. "How about a few drops of strawberry milk?"

"Chocolate _and _strawberry milk?" Discord voiced, quite amazed. "Why, you're a pony after my own heart." With a snap of his fingers, Discord converted some of the raindrops into strawberry milk and Pinkie quite eagerly gorged herself upon it.

Twilight Sparkle pursed her lips disapprovingly at her friends' indifference. It's true that this wasn't the first time they dealt with world-threatening danger, and at this point it was almost redundant, but the princesses' demeanor told her that this being, this _human_, was different. Nightmare Moon, Discord, Queen Chrysalis and even King Sombra had never invoked such a reaction from either Princess Celestia or Princess Luna. They were tight-lipped, their eyes were steely, and coldness seemed to emanate from them.

She approached the princesses from behind and cleared her throat, catching their attention. "Um, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, will Baade really come and confront us?"

"He'll come," Princess Celestia answered, still continuing to look forward in anticipation. "If there's anything I know about Baade, he would never back down from a face to face confrontation. His pride would never allow him to."

Though Twilight kept it to herself, she was confident there was more going on than what Princess Celestia had already spoken of.

"I can sense your uneasiness, my student," Celestia spoke up. Twilight froze and Celestia turned her head, giving Twilight a soft smile. "I know it may seem like I'm withholding information, but I'm only telling you as much as you need to know, you understand, don't you?"

Twilight nodded, even though she did not truly understand.

Luna's head suddenly turned to the right, her eyes wide. "He's here!"

"Is it that awfully skinny ape-like being dressed in a tattered red robe atop that hill?" Discord pointed out from his vantage point. The ponies looked to where Discord was pointing and sure enough, standing boldly atop a small hill was a bipedal figure dressed in a shabby red robe.

The main six exchanged confused glances.

"Uh… that feller certainly don't seem like much…"

"Oh my, just what in Equestria is he wearing? It's quite dreadful!"

"He actually looks pretty weak... Maybe we should help him?"

"He's nothing more than a skeleton! Everypony else wouldn't even have to lift a hoof. I can handle this, let me at him!"

"Discord! Why'd you stop the rain?!"

"Girls!" Twilight quickly chastised her friends over her shoulder. "We shouldn't underestimate him. Look at the princesses, see how serious they look?"

Celestia turned her head back to address the other mares behind her. "Stay here girls. Luna and I will speak with him and see if we may come to a peaceful solution."

As Luna and Celestia walked up towards the man, they man in turn walked towards them, prompting the three to meet in the middle.

"Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, long time, no see." Baade gave the royal duo a mocking bow. When he got up he eyed Luna and smiled playfully. "Ah, Luna, you've grown since we last met. I remember when you were about," Baade faced a palm face down at the ground, bending slightly to the side, making his hand level with his knee, "this high. And Princess Celestia…" He gazed at her momentarily with mournful eyes before continuing. "Ahem, yes forgive me. You must answer by 'Queen' now, don't you?"

"Princess," Celestia corrected. Baade crossed his arms and raised an intrigued eyebrow, smirking slightly as he did.

"Not a queen? Then that must mean there is no king. No King, no queen after all. How interesting…" He grinned malevolently at her before turning his attention to Luna. "And what of you, young Luna? No love in your life either?"

"We didn't come here for idle chit-chat, Baade," Luna replied coldly.

"No, I guess not, but if you could entertain just one more question before we get into the nitty-gritty of it all. Where is my dear old friend Star Swirl?"

Celestia and Luna remained silent, giving Baade his answer.

"I see… Well then. Perhaps you two are here to begin hopeless negotiations?"

"It's better to bandy words than to resort to violence, as is common for you _humans_." Spite practically dripped from Celestia's sentence. "Your kind is gone from this land, exiled to another planet, the war is lost, there's no need for any more conflict."

"Oh, you are ever so wrong, _Celly_," Baade voiced out his nickname for Celestia contemptuously, "For there is but one last participant that is still willing to fight!"

* * *

**And that's that. If anybody has any questions, feel free to ask.**


	2. Chapter 2

_Bzzt. Bzzt. Spshew!_ The spells flew across the field at an alarming rate as Baade exchanged red blasts of energy with Princess Luna and Princess Celestia. The celestial duo flew in the air, raining down their spells at Baade as he retaliated with spells of his whilst blocking theirs with reflective barriers that sent their spells flying back. In the middle of field were three large craters, smoking and recently created, which Baade carefully maneuvered around as he dodged the spells from above.

Discord and the other six mares were behind a hill, its opposite side now cratered with several blast shots. Twilight was on the ground, breathing heavily as Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash fanned her with their wings.

"Oh my, to think that we had missed three spells with the power of the Elements, it doesn't look like Twilight can go on," Rarity bemoaned.

"Tah think he was actually smart 'nuff tah _dodge_," Applejack pointed out, giving Discord a look.

Discord crossed his arms and looked away huffily. "I've no idea as to what you're insinuating."

"One… more…" Twilight struggled to stand back up. "I still got… one more in me… I have to…" She nearly fell but was quickly caught by Pinkie Pie.

"Ooohhh Twilight don't push yourself," Pinkie Pie begged, uncharacteristically worried. "I'm sure that the princesses can handle that big ole', well not really big, but definitely mean and skinny ole' meanie head."

"Then they wouldn't have asked for our help," was Rainbow Dash's blunt reply. Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack and Pinkie Pie all gave her incredulous looks. "What? It's true."

"Rainbow Dash is right." Twilight managed to stand without help, albeit with unsteady legs. A large laser-like spell flew overhead and caused everypony to reflexively duck.

"Discord," Twilight prodded Discord's leg, "I need you to go assist Princess Celestia and Princess Luna with Baade. They're going to need all the help they can get holding him down. I'm sorry but I think I only have one shot left in me so we _really _need to get him this time."

"As you say, Princess Twilight." He gave a bow and flew into the air in the direction of Luna and Celestia. He had narrowly avoided being vaporized and positioned himself between Celestia and Luna.

"Discord, what are you doing here?!" Celestia reprimanded. Another blast came from below and the three separated to avoid the shot.

"You're going to have to pay attention if you have any semblance of a chance, _ponies_!" Baade cried out mockingly from down below.

"I'm sorry Celestia but dear Princess Twilight had requested for me to aid you. She says she only has enough energy for one more spell."

Another spell flew by, buzzing over Discord's shoulder. Celestia bit the inside of her cheek, glaring down at Baade. "So be it. Luna, it's now or never, Discord, join in when you see fit." Celestia then went into a headlong dive, her horn pointed stalwartly towards Baade. Luna joined Celestia in her dive, using her magic to shield her older sister from Baade's spells with a defensive light-blue barrier.

Baade kept his arm extended towards Celestia, magical blasts of energy coming from his palm as he continued to unleash an unyielding barrage of destructive spells. The barrier surrounding Celestia began to crack as she drew closer and closer, turning the situation into a game of chicken with lethal consequences.

She was no more than three feet away when Baade conceded, turning his body to the side as Celestia whizzed dangerously by, her wing lightly brushing against his nose. Baade then turned towards her, attempting to fire another spell at Celestia's backside but was forcefully tackled away by Princess Luna who had been following her sister.

Being as emaciated as he was, the collision easily knocked Baade off his feet and sent him tumbling into a nearby crater. He dug his nails into the dirt in an attempt to stop his descent, though his frail fingers failed him and he stumbled all the way to the center of the crater where he was ensnared in a sticky pink cotton substance.

"Hah! Human, I do hope you enjoy your just _desserts_," Discord jeered at him from above.

Overhead, Celestia and Luna swooped in closer for the kill. In response, Baade casted spell that alighted himself ablaze, creating a brilliant column of fire that protruded from the center of the crater and kept the two homing Alicorns away. When the column of fire dissipated, the only thing left in the crater was a circular burn mark, with no sign of Baade.

"Please tell me that monkey did us a favor and turned himself to ash."

"You wish, _chimera_." Discord whirled around in time to see Baade's fist smash into his face, sending him plummeting down into the ground at a rocket's pace with a magically empowered punch. Upon contact with the earth, an explosion of dust, dirt, and debris was followed by a rumble that shook the ground and reverberated within the air.

"Discord!" The princesses cried in unison as they attempted to make out his figure within the haze created below.

"Pay attention princesses!" Still hovering in the air, Baade released a whip-like flare at the princesses. Luna shot upwards and Celestia downwards, allowing the flare to pass between them before Luna flew off to the right and Celestia to the left, flanking Baade.

_Not a smart idea to stay up here,_ Baade thought, dodging the princesses spells. _I can move in sudden bursts of speed, but I don't have the stamina for continuous bursts. I should get back to the ground. _Baade ended the magic that kept him levitating in the air, sending him into a free fall towards the ground. Luna and Celestia went down after him, dodging the spells he threw at them.

_At this rate I'll be impaled upon their horns the moment I try to slow down. _Baade looked down at the ground to gauge his distance. _This should be close enough_. Baade turned his body so that his front side was oriented towards the ground. He extended his arms and fired a spell at the ground, causing more dirt to fill the air and creating a dusty brown haze. The princesses pulled up before they got caught in the fog.

"Show yourself Baade!" Luna demanded.

"Curse you chimera! Release me at once!"

Celestia and Luna flapped their wings hard and blew the smog away. There on the ground was Baade, entangled once more in sticky cotton substance. However this time, wrapped around him and holding him in a full nelson was Discord.

"Celestia, Luna, If I may make a suggestion, I suppose you could take advantage of this little opportunity I had created for us?"

Celestia nodded to Luna who then lowered her horn, channeling her magic through it as she aimed the tip directly at Baade's heart.

"Not that easy!" Baade shouted. Like before, Baade engulfed himself in a column of fire. Luna fired her spell but the intensity of the flames made the magic dissipate before penetrating the infernal tornado.

"Princesses!" Discord yelled from within the column of flame, his voice clearly agonized. "I still have him! Tell Twilight… Do it now!"

There was no time for hesitation as Luna directed herself towards the hill the mares were hiding behind, shouting out in her royal voice. "**Baade is vulnerable! Fire your spell at the base of the tornado Twilight Sparkle!**"

Bound by Twilight's energy, the six mares ascended above the hill. Twilight's eyes glowed a luminescent white as the energies contained in the elements they wore began to fill her. All the magic she channeled into her body then went to her horn, firing off into a powerful rainbow colored beam towards her target. The beam impacted against the tornado with tremendous force, creating a small explosion that the princesses had to back away from.

Again, the princesses' vision was obscured by a large amount of haze and smoke as result from the explosion. The six mares, with Twilight held up by Applejack and Rainbow Dash, walked to the edge of the fog, the princesses descending to the ground next to them.

"Um, where is Discord?" Fluttershy asked, looking at the sky above them expecting him to be there.

Celestia sighed before answering. "Baade was a very elusive opponent. In order to hit him with a spell, Discord took it upon himself to hold him down. Even as the flames charred his flesh, Discord held on to Baade."

A gasp left the mares, and a soft cry left Fluttershy. Twilight placed a comforting hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. "It's okay Fluttershy. If Discord turned to stone again I'm sure we could change him back."

"That Baade feller sure was a toughie, wasn't he?" Applejack took a few steps closer to the haze as it began to clear up. "I wonder if… what in tarnation?!" The miasma cleared revealing a petrified Discord, his serpentine figure wrapped around Baade who, unlike Discord, was not stone and still breathing. His robe was now excessively tattered, he panted heavily, and he glared furiously at the ponies before him.

"Baade! How could you withstand the power of the Elements of Harmony?!" Luna shouted.

Baade shot a smirk at the blue princess. "Elements of Harmony? So that's what you call that power. Well, this chimera made the mistake of coming in contact with me. With all his efforts concentrated on holding me, even as my flames seared through his flesh, it was quite easy for me to drain the magical energy from him and use it in conjunction with my own to ward myself against your spell. Now to get this abomination off of me…"

Baade made a strong jerking movement, shattering the stone figure of Discord and relinquishing himself from Discord's stony embrace. As the pieces of stone crashed to the ground, Fluttershy let out a bloodcurdling scream.

"You monster!" With tears streaming from her eyes, Fluttershy charged at Baade with reckless abandon, an aberrant war-cry being released from her lungs. Rainbow Dash had managed to bite into Fluttershy's tail, allowing Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack to catch up and restrain Fluttershy.

Fluttershy's rage had brought Celestia and Luna out of their moment of shock and with extreme immediacy, charged at Baade. Baade looked as if he was about to cast a spell but before he could, he buckled over, falling to a knee and steadying himself by placing a hand on the ground. He let out a violent cough that threw out spurts of blood, speckling the ground with red droplets. He looked up as Princess Luna and Princess Celestia drew near, ready to finish him off.

The moment it looked as though Baade was finished, a loud caw was heard from above followed by a streak of black flushing past Baade's position. Within that moment Baade was gone and in the air, riding upon the back of a large raven, its feathers a sleek and shiny black and its beak maliciously pointed.

"Luna, stay here with the girls. I'll go after Baade." Without waiting for a response from her younger sister, Celestia took off into the air, a streak of white in the sky chasing after a blur of black. Fluttershy was now in a hysterical crying fit as she hugged the head of the now dismembered Discord close to her chest, the other five mares with their heads bowed and tears pouring from their eyes as well.

Luna herself was all too familiar with loss, and though the death of Discord also saddened her, her experience made her seem nearly emotionless. Out of fear of offending, she turned away from them.

_I'm sorry you had to experience such a thing, my little ponies, but the world can be cruel at times and at the very least, Discord's death serves as a valuable lesson. _

* * *

Celestia had her front hooves held out in front of her, improving the aerodynamics of her form as she pursued the human riding upon the black raven. Baade looked over his shoulder and gave Celestia a smug smirk, irking her. The raven then slowed abruptly and Celestia swiftly moved to the side to avoid collision, putting Baade and her side by side.

"Just like old times, eh Celly?" Baade called out jovially.

She gave him a vehement glare. "Those days are long over Baade."

The smile on Baade's face slowly melted away. "So I guess this confirms it then. Well, that's fine with me. Makes what I'm going to accomplish that much easier."

"Baade, there's no need to involve innocents in this!"

"Oh? Not only has my kind suffered heavy casualties at war but the remnants exiled to another planet? You _will _pay Celestia, I guarantee it." Baade patted the raven on the back which prompted it to go faster. Celestia flapped her wings harder to keep up and within a minute, the ruins of ancient city began to come into view.

Many towers and buildings had ruined bases and if they weren't completely dilapidated, stood at an angle, as if a giant had picked up the entire city then dropped it. Nature began to overtake the architecture in the form of vines and moss which greened the stonework. Only one building stood straight and true. In the very center stood a tower, three times taller than the tallest tower of the Canterlot Castle. It was constructed of pure marble and had funnel-to-needle shape, starting wide at the base but dramatically getting thinner starting at the mid-section going up. The very tip was about as wide as a single pony.

"Andralas…" Celestia softly whispered to herself. Once the raven was above the city it stopped and hovered in the air. Before she could get over the city, her face collided with an invisible wall, one that became visible upon contact. It glowed a bluish hue and formed a bubble over the city, even reaching over the tip of the tallest tower, though just barely.

"Surprised Celestia?" Baade mocked from within the confines of the shield. "This was the shield that was made to withstand your kind's final assault as our weapon was being prepared. Unfortunately it never went up as a traitor in our midst made sure it never would. And in the end, humanity lost."

Celestia shook her head disbelievingly. "How could this shield still be functional? It's been over three thousand years. There's no way that it could…" Celestia's eyes widened as it began to dawn on her, with Baade giving her yet another arrogant grin. "If the shield still works, that would mean…" Celestia glanced at the center tower in horror. She then closed her eyes, her horn glowing slightly. Baade looked at her questioningly. When she opened her eyes, she looked at him defiantly.

"Baade, your plan will not work. It will take a year for the tower to gather the energy it needs and the shield is due to fail months prior. You will not last."

"You got all that from a simple sensory energy emission spell? As talented as always Celly, though you seem to be forgetting one minor detail."

Celestia looked downwards as she tried to recall the one detail that made Baade think that he was the victor.

Baade let out a yawn. "Yes, well, you seem to be having a hard time recollecting. I'll be off then." The raven went into a steep descent towards the ruins of the city leaving Celestia outside the barrier to ponder what he meant.

_He can't mean… But what else could he be speaking about? I have to get back to the castle, I have to contact _her.

* * *

It was solemn evening in the restricted area of the Canterlot Castle garden as a small gathering of ponies stood in front of an unmarked monolithic tombstone. No words were spoken, with only the sniffling of noses, and open weeping of both Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy breaking the silence. Applejack had her eyes closed and her hat taken off, holding it respectfully above her heart. Rarity did her best to retain a ladylike composure, dabbing at the tears daintily with a handkerchief. Rainbow Dash, like Rarity, also tried to maintain her composure, though the quivering of her lips and the glistening of her eyes said otherwise.

Twilight had turned away from the grave. Princess Celestia took notice and tapped Twilight on the shoulder, gesturing to the side. Twilight nodded and the two stepped away from the gathering and conversed in whispers.

"I'm sorry you had to witness such a thing, Twilight."

"I'm sorry such a thing had to happen to Discord," Twilight mumbled, sounding almost resentful. "Why didn't I know I was going to hit Discord too? Why couldn't I hit Baade? Why-"

Celestia gently placed a hoof over Twilight's mouth. "You shouldn't be blaming yourself, especially when it is my fault I let him get away."

"_I _sent him out there to help you. _I _sent him to his death. If it weren't for my weaknesses Discord would still be alive!" Twilight had now begun to shout, attracting the attention of Princess Luna and her friends. Immensely infuriated, Twilight marched off back into the castle. Celestia followed after her and the two were alone within the hallways of the castle.

"Twilight Sparkle," Celestia called out sternly after her student. Twilight whirled around, eyes red and nostrils flared.

"Why can't anypony just point their hoof at me and say it? It's my entire fault! _My _fault! All my…" Twilight's words were muffled as Celestia placed Twilight's face into her shoulder in a comforting embrace. Twilight's body began to lightly convulse as the tears she held back poured onto Celestia's shoulders.

"Do not burden yourself with the blame, my student. It is all Baade's fault."

Twilight pulled away from Celestia slightly. "We have to stop Baade. For Discord."

"For Equestria." Celestia wiped away the tears staining Twilight's face. "Come with me to the archives, there is something I must do, and there is more I must tell you."

Celestia and Twilight exited the castle, taking the path that avoided Discord's burial site, much to Twilight's relief.

"So, what is it that you had to tell me, princess?"

"I told you before that Star Swirl exiled the remaining human population to another planet that already had a preexisting human population, correct? Well, Star Swirl had hoped that one day, Ponies and Humans could live in harmony once more, so he created two crystal balls for easier transport between our world and theirs so that he may observe them, one in the human world and one in our world. Unfortunately, over the centuries, it seems the humans of that world were just as blood thirsty as the ones that had lived here, so he hid the crystals.

About thirty-five or thirty-six years ago, I sensed the pony-side crystal emit some magic and I went as fast as I could to its location. It was on the peak of a mountain and sitting beside it, shivering in the cold, was a human woman by the name of Bonnie. I didn't want to reveal too much of our world to her, but at the same time, I myself was rather curious. I used a scrying spell, which in hindsight was probably not a good idea, as it invoked a shared vision for the both of us. We foresaw the events of Nightmare Moon, and Bonnie inadvertently learned more of our world.

She was elated and wanted to go back to her world using our world as an inspiration for a franchise. Rather than using magic to make her erase her memories, I decided to trust her and allowed her to do so as long as she kept the human-side crystal safe and the actual existence of our world a secret. And so she did, until a few years back.

With the crystal now safely stored within the Star Swirl section of the archives, I sensed magic emanating from it once more. Curious, I went over there and discovered another woman, by the name of Lauren. At first I was angry that Bonnie had broken our promise, but Lauren proved to be a nice person so I-"

"A what?" Twilight interrupted.

"A person, it's the human equivalent to 'pony'. As I was saying, she proved to be a nice person and she asked if there were any stories she could use. I showed her the letters you have written me and told her of events that had transpired. She used this material and the Equestria-based franchise in the human world has gained much more popularity than before. Lauren, however, decided she was finished with the project and in the kindest manner possible, asked if she could give responsibility of the crystal to yet another individual. I allowed her to and-"

"I'm sorry to interrupt again, princess, but why are you telling me this?"

Princess Celestia stopped walking, with her and Twilight now just outside the archives. "I'm sorry to say, but we're going to need the help of a human being." Without expanding further, Princess Celestia stepped inside the archives, Twilight following hurriedly after.

"A human?! But from what you told me, they're dangerous! Why would we want help from a human?!" Twilight, despite her deep respect for Princess Celestia, couldn't keep back the incredulity from her tone.

"It's true that humanity in general is quite dangerous, but there are quite a few exceptional individuals. But that is beside the point. Unfortunately, we _need _human assistance."

"But what for?"

Princess Celestia and Twilight were now just outside the Star Swirl section of the archives. Celestia unlocked the door before explaining her reasoning to Twilight. "When I chased after Baade, he made it to an old human city protected by a shield. Within that city is spell-amplification device. I believe using that device, Baade will enact his vengeance. It will take an entire year for it to be ready, and as it is being charged, it cannot be destroyed. But it can be stopped, by human hands; since it is only through human hands it can be operated."

When the two were inside the Star Swirl section of the archives, Princess Celestia approached the far wall and pushed a brick. A device pulled the wall to the side, revealing a small closet-sized room. Within the center was a pink crystal ball atop a pedestal, placed in an ornate silver foundation encrusted with sapphires on the side, a ruby in the center, and emeralds in between. Twilight stepped into the room an examined the crystal ball.

"So this is Star Swirl's transportation crystal, fascinating. But what's the plan? Do we just grab any human and expect them to help us?"

Celestia shook her head and smiled at her student's skepticism. "You'll find out soon. Now go on, _touch _the crystal."

* * *

Hot. There was no other word for the temperature as Jessie and Tiff walked hand-in-hand towards their hotel, a pink Hello Kitty backpack on Jessie's back and a duffel bag in his free hand. Due to heavy traffic, Jessie and Tiff left their cab and their driver, choosing to walk the rest of the way. The San Diego heat had forced Jessie to remove his blazer which he draped over a shoulder, undo the top buttons of his collared shirt and loosen his tie. While he did get his fair share of heat and warmth living on an island in the middle of the Pacific, he at least enjoyed the luxury of a permeating oceanic breeze throughout.

Tiff had advised him from dressing so warmly, and so formally, but Jessie insisted. The reflection of his face had started to trouble him even more, and dressing like the detective he was gave him a small amount of comfort, though the missing weight of his badge in his inner breast pocket and the handgun on his waist was something he had yet to get used to.

Tiff herself, much to Jessie's aversion, had opted to "cosplay"; something Jessie regretted exposing Tiff to during his college years. Apparently, during their year of separation, Tiff had developed an interest in Jessie's hobbies, perhaps as a coping mechanism, and while the San Vitores family did their best keeping Tiff away from the more adult themes, they couldn't keep Tiff away from the allure of dressing up as one's favorite character.

So, walking through San Diego, they drew many stares, everyone interested in the little girl in the cowboy hat, her long blonde hair tied by a single red band near the end, dressed in a plaid buttoned shirt tucked into a pair of jeans, wearing plastic-spurred cowboy boots, and three apples painted on her right cheek. Jessie was sure he would have been reported as a potential child sex offender if it wasn't for the sisterly familiarity Tiff regarded him in as she pointed and marveled at things excitedly as they held hands.

Once they arrived at their hotel, the blast of cool air as the large automatic glass and golden-gilded double doors opened was a welcome gift, and the two stepped into the hotel lobby, approaching the front desk.

"Room for Santiago," Jessie said to the clerk. The clerk's fingers flew all over the keyboard, typing his name into their search engine with practiced expertise.

She then pursed her lips and clicked her tongue. "I'm sorry sir, but I don't see your name in our database."

"You gotta be kidding me. I made these reservations last night."

She shook her head, her lips still pursed. "I'm sorry sir but I'm just not seeing it."

Jessie relinquished his grip on Tiff, dropped the bags he was carrying, and drummed his fingers impatiently on the desk as he tried to work out the situation. A subtle yet seemingly dangerous glower had appeared on his face, and the expression had caused the clerk to cower and tremble, her fingers quivering as she vainly tried to find his name.

* * *

Mindy Reyes was, by all means, an ordinary girl. Attractive in her own way, a full figure, and brunette hair, she could get a second glance from a man walking down the street, but from a record stand point, she was rather unremarkable. No violations, not even a parking ticket, but nothing too exemplary either. Having graduated college with a degree in sociology, she now works in the research aspect of an R&D team for My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. But despite her seemingly ordinary record, Mindy had an extraordinary secret.

She was, quite literally, the guardian to another world, the entrance being kept in a rather plain looking leather bag lying upon her hotel bed. While keeping it hidden somewhere safe was an option, Mindy had decided that the best way to keep such a secret safe is to have it on her at all times. Besides, she never knows when she might be contacted by the residents of this world.

Mindy, who was currently sitting on a small coffee desk in the corner checking her inbox on her laptop, was dressed in a grey t-shirt depicting everyone's favorite wall-eyed pony with a caption beneath reading "I love Derpy!" Around her neck was a lanyard with a laminated pass-card attached at the end.

"Now just have to attach and send... And done!" After hitting the "enter" key definitively, Mindy shut her laptop close and stood up from her seat. She approached the bed, picking up the leather bag on top and examined the contents. Afterwards, she stuffed her laptop inside, the pc clinking softly against what was inside already.

"Hmm, maybe it would have been better if I left it at home, I don't want Princess Celestia coming out of nowhere and-"Mindy's sentence was left unfinished as a sudden flash in front of her caused her to shriek and shield her eyes. When she looked over her arm, she saw a dazed Twilight, her eyes spinning as she lay comically on her belly, legs spread outwards on top of Mindy's bed. Mindy blinked twice before being able to completely comprehend what just transpired.

She didn't know how or why, but Mindy was just thankful that Twilight appeared when she was alone in her room. Mindy cleared her throat, approached the bed, leaned over and extended a hand to the dazed Twilight. "Hello Princess Twilight, my name is Mindy, Mindy Reyes. Since you're here, I suppose Celestia has already told you or maybe you just found the crystal on your own, being the curious individual that you are."

Twilight, after steadying herself, stood up on Mindy's bed, putting herself at about eye-level with Mindy, and looked at her suspiciously before placing her hoof within Mindy's hand and shaking. "How do you that about me?"

"I… know a few things," Mindy answered, grinning sheepishly. "But seeing how you're not too surprised to see me, I can only assume I was to be expected? What's going-"

Like before, Mindy's sentence was interrupted when another brilliant flash filled the room, Celestia appearing by the bedside this time.

"Ah, Princess Celestia!" Mindy quickly bowed.

Celestia looked around the hotel room with a curious eye. "This doesn't look like your house. Did you move?"

"What? Oh no, this is my hotel room. I was just thinking that maybe I should have left the crystal at home since you could end up popping out of nowhere any second and maybe end up appearing in public." Mindy picked up the leather bag and dumped out a sapphire blue crystal ball. Unlike its Equestrian counterpart, it was not resting within a foundation, it was slightly more translucent and a swirling sparkling mist of magical energy can be seen within.

"Perhaps it was a better idea than you think, Lady Reyes," Celestia bowed her head humbly towards Mindy, "Because as it would appear, we are in _dire _need of your help."

Mindy opened her mouth but failed to voice out any words. Before anything else could be said, the sound of her hotel room door knob being jostled caught their attention. Perplexed, Mindy turned to the princesses and pointed to the bathroom. Twilight and Celestia nodded and went inside before Mindy approached her room door and looked through the peephole, seeing a black-haired man in a suit and tie speaking to a young blonde girl in what looked like a cowgirl outfit.

"First she misspells our name, and then she gives us the wrong key…"

"Jess, the key's not working because it's not our room. That's a one, not a seven!" The young girl chided.

"Weird, it looks a lot like a seven… I'm going to try again."

Mindy decided to stop him preemptively and opened the door, a decision she immediately regretted. There, staring straight into the windows of her soul was the coldest and ostensibly cruelest being that she ever locked eyes with. Like the gaze of a basilisk, he petrified her where she stood, her body and mind not even comprehending the basic instinct of fight or flight, her spirit hoping, begging instead for mercy. Then he turned away.

Once his back faced her, Mindy regained control of her senses and found that she was able to move. The little girl walking beside him turned back to her and waved. "Sorry about that lady! We had the wrong room!"

Mindy attempted to control her breathing as she stepped back inside her own room, closing the door shut behind her. "G-guys? You c-can come out now."

"Lady Reyes, are you alright? Your voice was trembling." Princess Celestia looked at her with concern as she and Twilight stepped out of the bathroom. "And it looks like you're sweating too."

"Oh am I? Hehe…" Mindy wiped her forehead of moisture. "It's nothing. I just thought for a moment I was in trouble."

Twilight gave Mindy a perplexed look. "Why would you be in trouble?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. Back to the 'in need of my dire help' situation, why do you need my help?" Mindy sat down on her bed, thankful for the moment of relaxation after her terrifying "encounter".

Celestia and Twilight exchanged wary glances. "Well, it is a good thing you've taken the initiative to sit down, Lady Reyes."

Princess Celestia explained to Mindy the events that happened earlier in the day. Mindy couldn't suppress her gasp upon hearing Discord's demise and she listened intently through the explanation of the spell-amplification device that Baade was bound to be using.

"Okay, and you need a human to act as fail-safe for the device." Mindy concluded. "And you haven't thought of asking me because…?"

"Bringing you into Equestria means making you a potential target for Baade," Princess Celestia explained. "Of course if you're offering I certainly won't-"

"Nononono," Mindy interrupted, waving her hands frantically. "I'm not looking to get vaporized, thank you."

"I doubt you would have the time as well," Princess Celestia added. "As unorthodox as this may sound, we're going to need this person to stay within Equestria."

"Sounds dangerous," Mindy pointed, "I mean, just the past three years alone, Equestria has seen how many world-ending disasters averted, now you toss in this Baade guy, you're really going to make this person work."

Celestia conceded to Mindy's knowledge with a solemn nod of her head. "Yes, that is true, but it serves a dual purpose. Firstly, it would be of great benefit to have this person on-hoof for us. There are so many variables that make the future decidedly unpredictable. Secondly, having this person stay in our world, making friends and establishing connections, is a great way of making this person feel as if he or she has a vested stake in the security of our world."

Mindy nodded understandingly. "Smart, give them a bunch of friends they wouldn't want to lose; get their loyalty so to speak."

"Princess Celestia, isn't that a little manipulative?" Twilight asked, clearly worried.

"We'll do whatever it takes to preserve Equestria's way of life." Princess Celestia's blunt answer made the fur running down Twilight's back stand on end as a cold chill traveled down her spine.

Mindy had also noticed Celestia's demeanor and she cleared her throat in an attempt to ease the tension. "Ahem, right, it's going to take me a bit, but I'll try my hardest to find you a candidate, okay?"

"Thank you, Lady Reyes. We are in your debt." Celestia bowed her head and touched the crystal with a wing, disappearing in a magnificent flash.

"We appreciate your time!" Twilight hastily bowed as well before touching the crystal and disappearing from Mindy's room.

Once she was alone, placed her back on her bed, letting out a drawn-out sigh as she stared at the ceiling hopelessly. "Oh Equestria, what a disaster-filled world you are."

* * *

The convention center was packed with booths, stands, and as expected, people, many of whom carried cameras and bags of goodies. Jessie had wondered what the convention was, as Tiff held on to the tickets excitedly, and as it turns out, it was the San Diego Comic-Con. Despite the crowd, Tiff and Jessie always seemed to find elbow room, many people making way for the dangerous looking man. Tiff didn't seem to notice as she marveled at everything in sight. When she would run up to a booth, Jessie would follow her, making anybody nearby, except for those working the booth, to disperse. Jessie tried to look as disarming as possible, holding Tiff's hand, buying her what she wanted, and even having her sit on his shoulders as he carried her around.

Jessie's interactions with Tiff helped achieve some minor success in looking harmless, and soon people were bumping shoulders and elbows with him in the crowded convention center, though they still avoided his steely gaze.

Within an hour, Jessie noticed an extremely hesitant group of people following him and Tiff. He kept them within the periphery of his vision whilst still holding onto Tiff's hand. They fumbled cameras in their hands and would often whisper to each other. Within a half-hour, the group pushed one of themselves towards Jessie's direction. Jessie took notice and after deciding enough was enough, confronted the scared man.

He was about the same age as Jessie, a foot taller, but also scrawnier, and wore what Jessie recognized as polarized 3d glasses on his face.

"What can I help you with?" Jessie asked. Tiff giggled, the scene of a taller man cowering before her brother brought her to near fits of laughter.

"U-um, y-yes, well…" The hipster-looking man stammered. "We uh, we couldn't help but noticing," he pointed at the rest of the group, who immediately tried to hide after he pointed them out, "that your uh… umm," he then pointed at Tiff, not sure what to call her.

"My sister," Jessie replied.

"Y-yes, right, of c-course. We notice that your sister resembles Applejack, you know that pony from-"

"Yeah yeah, I know, I watch the show."

"Oh you do?" The man seemed to be less afraid after hearing Jessie say so and adopted a less anxious disposition. "We were just wondering if we could maybe take some pictures."

Jessie looked down at Tiff. "That okay with you?"

Tiff nodded eagerly and the man gestured to his group to come over. Soon after more people joined in and Jessie was forced to stand on an unused table just to keep her within his sight.

"Oh, so you're taking a year-long break before starting your college studies?" Away from the main crowd gathered around the several booths on the floor, conversing was Mindy and a young man, about eighteen.

"Well, yeah, it's not like I can just graduate high school and then go straight into learning again, right?" The teenager looked at Mindy, expecting her to agree.

"Uh, a lot of people do. So tell me more about that mixed martial art thing your into, it sounds really interesting." Mindy did her best not to sound sarcastic. Truthfully, Mindy was desperate. Most of her best candidates were either too busy or too wimpy, and while this one didn't seem like either, he did seem a bit short when it came to intelligence.

"Oh, it's nothing really; I fight in a local league, one of the best. I mean okay, I have more losses than wins but that's mostly because the other guys got lucky, ya know? I mean, making me tap out is not actually like winning, if you ask me, right? I mean like, in a real fight I would have like totally decked 'em out."

Mindy looked at him unimpressed. "In a real fight, tapping out won't end the match and you'd end up with a broken limb or pass out."

"Hey, what's that guy standing on the table for?" He pointed out, ignoring Mindy's statement. Mindy looked and had to suppress her gasp. It was the same man that was at her hotel door earlier, the one she identified as "Jess" as called by the little girl. His arms were crossed and it looked like he was staring guardedly at the center of a small crowd which had gathered in the middle of the convention floor. When the crowd had finally disseminated, it revealed the blonde girl at the very center, who walked up to the man standing on the table. Jess got down, took the girl's hand and began to walk away until someone shouted.

"Thief!" Someone cried. A woman pointed at an individual running and dodging past people, a purse clutched tightly to his chest. As he made his way past Jess, Jess's hand shot out like lightning, Mindy hardly capable of fathoming the speed, and grabbed the purse snatcher's collar. The thief then whirled around, dislodging Jess's grip, and threw a swift and direct punch. With his other hand still holding onto the girl's, Jess caught the punch with his free hand.

Before the robber could react, Jess then bent the wrist back suddenly, forcing the man down to his knee to avoid having his wrist broken. As the thief came down, Jess's knee went up, meeting the thief's chin halfway, and knocking the would-be robber back. The girl then bent down and picked up the purse, returning it to the woman who had walked up to the scene.

"Here you go lady!"

"Thank you." The woman then looked at Jess, nodding her head. "Th-thank you."

Jess nodded back and a round of applause was awarded to him by the crowd of onlookers. A shade of red colored his cheeks suddenly making him less imposing, and he shyly pushed his glasses up before walking away, the little cowgirl's hand in his.

* * *

Mindy let out a loud yawn as she went into the hotel lobby. It was an hour past midnight and she was just coming back from an after-hours convention meet-up, pursuing potential candidates. While Princess Celestia merely asked for someone who's brave enough and had the time, Mindy had created a third requirement, someone who can hold their own. It was a seemingly ridiculous requirement, considering that in a world of magic, a powerless human being, no matter how competent, would not under normal circumstances be able to last against the mythic creatures and absurd powers that be that exist in Equestria. But it was one she found necessary to impose nonetheless.

"One o' five? The bar should still be open. No way could I send one of these poor guys to Equestria while I'm sober."

When Mindy found the hotel bar it was, as expected, sparsely populated, with a single bartender and a few patrons. Her attention was caught by a familiar looking man sitting at the corner table, four bottles of beer in front of him. It was Jess, the same dangerous-looking man that appeared at her door and stopped a thief at the convention. His eyes were shaded by his hair as he looked down on the table. He seemed to be nursing his drinks as he didn't seem to be in any rush to finish them. He had disrobed his jacket, his top now dressed only in a white collar shirt and loosened tie, the sleeves rolled up past his elbows.

Again, a small sense of fear resonated within Mindy, but it soon evaporated as he lifted up his head to take a sip from his bottle, revealing his eyes. They weren't the cold, unmerciful, death-assured orbs of destruction like before. They were now wretched, shameful, morose; the eyes of man who had seen too much. Such a pathetic sight portrayed by a man she had feared hours earlier made Mindy compelled to approach him.

She took the seat in front of him, and he glanced at her briefly before looking back down at his bottle. Wordlessly, he pushed another bottle towards Mindy.

"Thank you," Mindy said, taking a sip from the bottle. She looked at him expectantly, awaiting a response that never came. "So… your name's Jess?"

He glanced up at her again, looking at her, reading her, perhaps trying to discern how she knew his name. "… Jessie."

"Jessie, right. I'm Mindy. I uh, I saw what you did at the convention with that purse snatcher, that was pretty cool."

Jessie shrugged nonchalantly. "Just doing my job." He took another dainty sip of his beer. Mindy raised an eyebrow, giving Jessie the need to clarify. "I'm a cop. Well, was a cop? No, still a cop I guess."

"Um?"

"I'd rather not talk about it," Jessie quickly added, finishing his bottle of beer before moving on to the next one. He then eyed Mindy curiously. "Wait a sec, you're that woman whose door I accidently disturbed, aren't you?"

Mindy chuckled nervously. "Haha, yeah, that's right."

"You looked like you were about to wet yourself."

"Yes, about that, I uh, the thing is…"

"It's fine," Jessie interrupted. "It's not like I haven't noticed how people see me. Apparently I get really scary looking when I'm even slightly annoyed." Jessie self-consciously rubbed the center of his brow with his thumb.

"So that little girl you were with?"

"My sister," Jessie answered quickly, as if prepared.

"I couldn't help but notice your sister looked like-"

"Applejack, yeah, I know."

Mindy took a small sip from the bottle Jessie gave her earlier. _He seems competent enough, and at the very least he's familiar with the show, and he has a sister that loves it judging from the way she dressed up. Maybe, I could work that angle? _

"Do you... watch the show with your sister?"

"I used to," Jessie said, peering into an empty bottle for any remains of its amber fluid. "But because of work, I ended up missing an entire season.

"Oh," Mindy articulated, sounding disappointed, "you seem like a busy guy."

Jessie looked at Mindy suspiciously. "You seem… let down. Did you have plans for me?"

"Wow," Mindy said, widening her eyes, "you're pretty perceptive. Oh wait, you said you're a cop, or was a cop… still a cop? I'm sorry for blabbering, you said you didn't want to talk about it; I'll just shut up now." To silence herself she placed the beer bottle back in her mouth, taking a bigger swig than before.

Jessie began to peel the label off the bottle with his thumb before looking back at Mindy. "So, what is it?"

"Hm?"

"What's the job?"

With the bottle still in her mouth, Mindy waved her free hand, signaling Jessie no. When she finished drinking, she wiped the excess fluid from her lips with the back of her hand. "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"I've been suspended," Jessie said suddenly, nearly causing Mindy to choke on her gifted beer. "It's really been bumming me out, and since I have a little sister to take care of, I don't want to have to rely on this," Jessie held up a beer bottle as a reference, "to cope. I need a distraction."

Mindy found it almost impossible to contain her smile. "Okay then, job interview time. If, let's say, your sister's favorite fictional world was about to be destroyed, would you do anything to help it?"

Jessie could only look at Mindy glumly, unsure of her motivations. Clearly she was trying to trick him, he could see that much at least, but his investigative nature given to him by years of police work wanted a clearer picture, and to get it he had to jump down the rabbit hole. "Of course."

Mindy was practically beaming at this point. "Hehe, I definitely will hold you accountable for that," Mindy picked up her bottle of beer and stood up, gesturing at Jessie with her finger to come with her.

"Um, you don't have to pay me for sex, and quite honestly, even as a suspended police officer, I can't allow-"

"The job isn't sex!" Mindy blurted, catching the attention of the few patrons left in the bar as well as the bartender. "Not what it sounds like folks! Ohmygodthisissoembarrasingjustcomewithme!" Mindy had grabbed Jessie by the wrist and pulled him up, leading him out of the bar, into the lobby, and into the elevator.

After their elevator ride, Mindy led him into her hotel room. Jessie stood awkwardly by the door as Mindy fumbled through her leather bag. When she turned back to face him, she held in her hands a blue crystalline ball, its surface separated from her skin by a handkerchief.

"Not wanting to get any smudges on it?" Jessie asked, regarding the crystal ball apprehensively.

"Kinda, I want you to touch it."

_This is it_, Jessie thought. Whatever this woman was planning, whatever she needed him to do was somehow involved with the crystal ball. He considered all the different scenarios and possibilities touching the ball may create. Was it perhaps a priceless treasure stolen from another country? Was she trying to frame him for the theft? None of the scenarios Jessie could think of had come out positive, but he could not stop his hand from reaching out towards the ball, morbid curiosity driving him on. The moment the surface of his skin came in contact with the crystal, his vision whitened.

* * *

**AN: That's right I killed Discord -3-  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Sorry for the late upload, this chapter came out WAY later than I would have expected. I'm sorry the quality doesn't isn't all that great considering the waiting period :/**

* * *

"Oof! Ow, okay, that hurts." Jessie hit the ground with a loud thud, landing on his front-side. He could have sworn he felt like he was traversing across the universe at a speed incomprehensible to even the brightest minds, as the vision of stars, galaxies and nebulas quickly flew by until he closed in on a blue planet, one quite similar to Earth in color, though the shape of the continental land masses were unfamiliar.

He readjusted his glasses and stood up, expecting to see Mindy in front of him. Rather, what he saw was a giant hourglass which seemed to be the centerpiece of the room. In fact, the room he was standing in had changed, with bookshelves lined with books, scrolls and parchments flanking him. The room was lit by small candles that were mounted on the walls. Jessie slowly rotated, looking around the room as he attempted to comprehend what just happened. A creeping sense of familiarity began to set in and he approached the giant hourglass in the center.

"I've seen this before… I can't put my finger on it."

"A bigger fan of the show would have recognized it right away." Jessie turned around, seeing that it was Mindy behind him. "You're probably going to need this." Mindy handed him an amber brown bottle and Jessie hastily drank from it.

"I've seen this place before!" Jessie yelled; panic heightening the tone of his voice to a comedic pitch. Jessie ran to a window, examining the scenery outside. It was pitch black, with only the moon and stars providing light, though as his eyes adjusted to the dark, he began to make out faint lights down below him. They resembled street lights, providing vision for paved roads. Many of the buildings were white towers topped with either a droplet shaped golden dome or tiled cone roofing. "I've seen this place before!"

Mindy rolled her eyes. "Is that all you have to say? Geez, I thought you'd be more ecstatic or something."

Jessie tossed his head back, chugging down half the bottle before placing it on a nearby shelf.

"Um, you shouldn't put that there, Princess Celestia might get upset." Within a flash, Jessie was in front of Mindy, grasping her arms bewilderedly.

"Why are you saying that?!"

"Jessie! Calm down! You're in Equestria!"

Jessie stepped back from Mindy and shook his head. "Nuh uh, no way. It's not possible. It is _not _possible. There is no way-"

"Look around you Jessie," Mindy interrupted. "Tell me, what does this place look like to you?"

Jessie quickly scanned the room once more before shaking his head at Mindy. "I must be drunk, because, there is absolutely no way in hell that I am in the Star Swirl the Bearded section of the Canterlot Archives!"

"So you do recognize it," Mindy pointed out.

Jessie started to breathe in and out deeply in an effort to calm himself. "Okay… okay, I'm in a world that looks like Equestria-"

"It _is _Equestria," Mindy corrected.

"That looks like Equestria," Jessie went on, purposefully ignoring Mindy's statement. "Okay. So, why? Why am I here, why'd you bring me here?"

"It's the job. Before I actually explain it to you, I figure I'd make sure you believed me first by taking you here. So, you feel okay now?"

Jessie shook his head, still not accepting, or rather, believing the reality. "I don't… I don't... C-could we go back? I-I, I'm not exactly comfortable-"

"We'd much rather discuss things here." Jessie and Mindy turned to the entrance, the metal gate having been opened, to see Princess Luna sauntering in. "Ah, I used the royal 'we' again didn't I? Old habits die hard I suppose. Now, seeing as how there are two humans here, I assume one of you is the guardian and the other the volunteer?"

"Princess Luna!" Mindy hastily bowed towards the princess. "It's an honor to finally meet you!" Mindy then turned her head to the side, seeing Jessie point a trembling finger at Luna. "Don't point at her you idiot! Bow!"

"Puh-puh-puh-princess Luna…" was all Jessie could mutter as he continued to point at the night blue Alicorn. "Dru-dru-drunk! Yeah, I gotta be drunk… No way this is…" Jessie stumbled and fell down on his rear as he took a step back. Even on the ground he continued to scoot back, back-crawling until his back bumped into a shelf which caused a few books to fall off. Mindy and Luna winced at each _thump_ from every book that struck Jessie on the head, which left him unconscious and on the ground.

"Is _that _your best candidate?" Princess Luna asked, quizzically looking at Mindy for an explanation.

Mindy chuckled nervously. "Don't worry princess; he's much more competent when he's sober."

"Doesn't the fact that he's inebriated bring his competency into question now?" Princess Luna countered, intensifying Mindy's anxious chuckling.

"Oh man, now I feel like I have the worst hangover…" Groaning and gingerly rubbing the top of his head, Jessie sat up and looked at Mindy and Luna, somewhat dazed. "I still see princess Luna, and my skull feels like it's been mohawked. This… this is for real, isn't it?"

"Mmhm." Mindy offered Jessie a hand and pulled him up. Jessie continued to stare at Luna disbelievingly, unnerving Luna.

"Must you look at us so? We are rather unsettled."

"Oh, _you're _unsettled?" Jessie retorted. "Gee, I wonder what that makes me?"

"How about incredibly rude?" Mindy answered, grabbing Jessie by the arm and making him face her. "You're forgetting that's she's a _princess, _Remember? _Princess _Luna."

"_Princess _Luna is not supposed to exist!"

**"You dare question our existence?!" **Princess Luna directed her booming voice straight at Jessie, causing him to topple over into another bookshelf once more. This time, a single, sizeable tome fell down; practically flattening the bump he received from the previous books, and, once again, leaving him out cold.

"Aw man, not again, I still didn't get a chance to explain things." Mindy walked over to Jessie and vainly tried to slap him awake.

Princess Luna held a hoof over her mouth, astonished. "Oh dear, we didn't mean to inflict bodily harm. How is his condition lady Reyes?"

"He's breathing, he could have a concussion, so I better bring him back to our world for treatment." Mindy bent down and tossed one of his arms over her shoulders and lifted him up. "Augh, why are boys so heavy…" Before Mindy dragged Jessie to the orb she looked back to Princess Luna. "I'll bring him back tomorrow if he's okay."

Luna looked at Mindy with a frown. "He seemed rather… bewildered. Would he even agree to come back? Perhaps it would be better if we reconfigure his memory."

Mindy offered Luna a rather cheesy thumbs-up. "Don't worry princess, he practically _promised _me he'll do this." Mindy then began to slowly amble towards the pink crystal, dragging Jessie along as she did.

* * *

"A human? Really?! If there's anything we learned it's that humans are bad news! What you just told us is bad news!" It was eight o'clock in the morning and Twilight Sparkle and her five friends had gathered within Ponyville's Library to discuss Princess Celestia's plan, one that Rainbow Dash clearly did not approve of. "Discord is _dead_ because of a human! And we're going to bring another one in here?"

Rainbow Dash's blunt reminder of yesterday's events drew out a soft whimper from Fluttershy.

"It's okay sugar cube." Applejack placed a comforting hoof on Fluttershy's shoulder. In an out of character manner, Fluttershy brushed off Applejack's hoof, stomped the floor with her own, and looked at Applejack defiantly.

"No! It's not okay!" She then turned to Twilight. "Rainbow Dash is right! They're nothing but trouble! Because of them, Discord is… Discord is…" As quick as stern and assertive Fluttershy came was as quick as she left, the memory of Discord's unceremonious death bringing her down to all four knees and sobbing.

Everypony gathered around and comforted the whimpering Fluttershy, all embracing in one large group hug. Fluttershy's, and essentially Rainbow Dash's, anger was understandable, and everypony else was also perturbed by Discord's passing. Later, Twilight will explain Princess Celestia's reasoning for the necessity of having a human, but for the moment she allowed her friends to grieve. She broke away from the hug and left the library.

In complete contrast to what had occurred in the library, Ponyville seemed to be rather complacent, everypony walked around with a smile on their face, completely oblivious to the danger Equestria was currently in, and to the grieving within the Golden Oaks Library. Twilight looked upon them jealously, wishing that perhaps somepony else could shoulder the burdens she was expected carry. Twilight shook her head once she realized what she was thinking, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.

_Everypony is counting on me, more so now that I'm a princess. I will not abandon my duty, my destiny, and I will see that Equestria gets through this crisis_. After reaffirming her convictions, she opened her eyes, and headed towards the direction of the Everfree forest. She put her wings to good use, reaching the edge of the forest in next to no time. At this point, she elected to travel by hoof, slowly taking in the forest's haunting beauty.

Twilight cantered through the forest purposefully, knowing full well where she wished to be. As she drew nearer to her destination, a low rumbling growl reverberated through the air and vibrated the ground, drawing a smile on her face as she knew the proximity of her target. Pushing past a sizeable bush, she found it, a large scaly purple mass with elongated green spikes running bilaterally down its length. She approached the mass and pressed the side of her face against its scales, allowing their coolness to relax her.

After a moment of contact, the mass stirred and uncoiled, revealing a thick long neck attached to an elongated triangular reptilian head. The dragon stood, stretched out its arms and wings and yawned in a sentient manner, revealing its full form. It was the size of a small hill. The dragon's wings were like awnings, the wing flaps a diaphanous green and when it had finished stretching, furled them unto its back. The spikes that ran down its back started on the top of his head with a very large one, decreasing in size as they went down its vertebral line, all the way to the tip of its tail.

Its scales were a magnificent purple hue, and its underside was a much lighter shade. It possessed thick and muscled arms and legs. Teeth protruded outside its mouth from its upper jaw, lethally jagged. Its nails on its claws and feet were fatally sharp. Small amounts of smoke trailed from its nostrils as it smiled contently down at Twilight.

"Mmm, hey Twi," it spoke in a surprisingly adolescent voice.

Twilight placed her face intimately against his leg as she looked up at him. "Hey Spike, did you get another growth spurt?"

Spike's smile turned into a smirk. "Maybe just a little one." Even for a dragon, Spike was very large, already outsizing the teenagers they had encountered years before.

"You're just _so _big; it's really hard to believe."

Spike continued to smirk. "Heh, that's what she said.

"I don't like that joke," Twilight reprimanded, giving him a stern look.

"Sorry…" Spike said, averting his gaze shamefully.

"You've been spending a lot of time in this forest," Twilight moved on, "why is that?"

Spike gave her a dismissive shrug and took a sudden interest in a rock which he fiddled with daintily with a claw. "I dunno, I'm just a little more comfortable here…"

"You could always stay with me at the castle."

Spike flicked the rock he was toying with away, the force of the blow embedding the rock into the trunk of a tree. He then stood up to his full length, towering over Twilight. "Twi… I don't think it's a good idea for me to hang around town; _any _town for that matter. The last time I was in Ponyville, I think I scared away an entire family."

Twilight shook her head disbelievingly. "No, that can't be true. It's _Ponyville_, everypony knows about you."

Spike slouched back down to Twilight's level. "Twi, you've been at the castle so you probably haven't noticed but Ponyville's been getting bigger. Ponies have been moving in from everywhere, and when they see me, they just freak out. It's better for the town if I just stay where I belong."

"You _belong _with me," Twilight insisted, stepping closer to Spike. "The only reason you stayed in Ponyville was to watch over the library for me, and if you aren't going to do that, you may as well stay with me and continue being my assistant."

"Mm, yeah I guess," Spike conceded, "I sure will miss Rarity."

Twilight laughed lightly and slowly rubbed the spikes running down his neck flat with her hoof. "Yeah, I bet you will…"

"Something bothering you, Twilight?" Spike asked as he lowered his head a neck, giving Twilight easier access to his spikes. "You sound pretty depressed."

Twilight sighed and stopped petting Spike, lying down against him. "What if I told you the world was in danger?"

A plume of smoke snorted out of Spike's nostrils as he scoffed. "Again? What else is new?"

"Spike… We went to confront the danger and… Discord died."

"What?" Spike turned his head so that he was looking at Twilight. Twilight could see the bewilderment in her young dragon's eyes as he tried to comprehend the very nature of death. "D-dead? But… you stopped it, right?"

Twilight shook her head and covered her eyes with a leg. "No, I'm sorry Spike, but in the end I couldn't do anything… I-it was all muh-my fault…" Twilight started to sob and convulse, prompting Spike to wrap himself around her, akin to that of dragon guarding its most precious of treasures.

"Tell me what happened, Twi."

* * *

_Knock knock knock. _Mindy rapped the door to Jessie's hotel room impatiently. She had just set up an appointment with Princess Celestia and informed the princess that she and her chosen candidate would appear before her within the hour and she has yet to determine whether or not Jessie would accept.

In hindsight, it would have been better to hold off on telling the princess when her ideal candidate was still a flight risk, though after Celestia's discovery of the beer bottle the two humans have unwittingly left behind, Mindy wanted to say anything to placate the princess.

The door opened, revealing a bedraggled Jessie, having slept in the clothes he wore last night without bothering to take a single piece off. His eyes were bloodshot and his mouth curled downwards in a frown.

"Good morning Jessie, I'm here to-"

"Wait," Jessie interrupted, using the side of his hand to rub the sleep out of eyes. "Before you say anything crazy…" Jessie looked over his should then stepped out of the room, cautiously closing the door behind him. "Okay, you are free to start saying crazy things."

"I made an appointment with Princess Celestia and… what're you doing?" Mindy stopped herself when she witnessed Jessie pinch the skin on his left bicep with his index finger and thumb.

"Confirming that this is reality," Jessie answered blithely.

"You're starting to draw blood."

Jessie stopped pinching himself and rubbed the bleeding area delicately. "Owie…"

"Ohhkay… Now that you've confirmed that you are in fact experiencing reality, we should really get going, Princess Celestia found the beer bottle we left in the archives and she wasn't all too pleased with that." Mindy pointed a thumb towards her room, urging Jessie to come along.

"Yeah, yeah, just wait a sec." Jessie opened the door to his room and stuck his head inside. "Hey Tiff, I'm going out for a bit, keep the door locked and don't let anyone in, okay?"

"Jess, your shirt's all wrinkly!"

"It's fine, Tiff, but thanks for worrying."

"Actually," Mindy spoke up, right before Jessie closed the door completely. "Maybe it's better if you did change your shirt. And maybe your pants. You should also probably grab a blazer or a sports jacket-"

"I thought we were in a rush?" Jessie interrupted.

"Yeah, well, you can't show up looking like _this,_" Mindy pointed distastefully at his wrinkled garb, "at a meeting with a princess."

"Princess?" The inquiry regarding the princess came from the little blonde girl that appeared by Jessie's leg. She was dressed in white pajamas spotted with several depictions of Jigglypuff. She stood there rubbing her eyes in a similar fashion Jessie had done so as she clung to his pant leg. "What's happening, Jess?"

"Um…" Jessie quickly glanced at Mindy who could only give him a shrug. "It's uh, a job thing, Tiff."

"More work?" Tiff's eyes watered at the prospect. "You said we were gonna spend more time together."

"And we will!" Jessie bent down to a knee and affectionately tousled Tiff's hair. "This job will let me do just that. Now to grab me be a new shirt…"

* * *

Mindy and Jessie ambled down the hall to Mindy's room at a snail's pace as Jessie continued to fidget with his tie. Mindy held on to Jessie's blazer as he, for the fifth time, undone his tie so that he may try to do it better.

"Wow, for someone who has to wear a tie to work every day, you sure suck at tying one," Mindy remarked with a hand over her mouth, attempting to stifle a chuckle.

"Yeah, well, you can say for the past year I've been a little out of practice." Jessie finished his Windsor knot and presented himself towards Mindy. "Okay, how's this?"

"It'll do, here." Mindy handed Jessie his jacket which he put on. "You know, hearing what you said about spending more time with your sister; you're not planning on bringing her with you, are you?"

"What if I am?" Jessie asked glibly as he buttoned his cuffs. "All we have is each other."

"Princess Celestia made it clear to me she only wanted _one _human."

"And you know what was made clear to me?" Jessie asked challengingly. "Nothing, absolutely nothing. I don't know why Equestria exists, I don't know why you have this magic crystal ball that could take me there, and most importantly, I don't even know the details of this so called 'job' you have for me."

The small amount of enmity that emanated from Jessie sent a chill down Mindy's spine, making her tremble. Jessie let out a sigh when he noticed.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to sound like… whatever I sounded like."

Jessie's apology allowed Mindy to regain her composure. "No, it's my fault, I just assumed you would just go along with everything and I didn't give you any explanation whatsoever."

"Still," Jessie insisted, "there was no need for me to be so hostile. I guess I was just a little annoyed over the tie thing."

They arrived at Mindy's door where Mindy gave Jessie one final inspection. "Okay, shoes polished, suit ironed, tie… er," Mindy quickly adjusted Jessie's tie, "okay, you look very presentable. Actually…" Mindy dug her hand into her pocket and pulled out a handkerchief which she then stylistically folded and stuffed into the breast pocket of Jessie's jacket. "Perfect!"

Jessie glanced at the handkerchief in his breast pocket and frowned. "Isn't this a bit much?"

"You're meeting with a princess, there's no such thing."

"…It's pink."

Mindy rolled her eyes as she opened the door to her room. "It's perfect, now let's go."

The door swung open, revealing the sapphire-blue crystal ball resting in the center of Mindy's bed. Jessie prudently approached the bedside and tossed a nervous glance at Mindy. She motioned with her head for him to go on.

Jessie took a nervous gulp and extended a shaky hand towards the ball. _I've already confirmed that I'm not dreaming and what I'm experiencing now is real. If I end up in Equestria because I touched this ball, then-_

Jessie was unable to complete his thought, the light contact from his middle finger lightly brushing against the crystal sending him on a journey through the universe.

"Then I guess I'm not going crazy," Jessie voiced aloud as he pushed himself off the floor and patted the dust off his pants. When he looked around, he was somewhat astonished by the fact that he wasn't surrounded by bookshelves but rather standing in an elongated room with a long red carpet leading up to a sizeable throne.

"Um, Mindy, I don't think we're supposed to be here… Mindy?" Jessie looked around, seeing no brilliant flash of light heralding the arrival of another other-worldly travel. "Huh, guess she's not here yet."

"Lady Reyes will not be joining us this morning. And do not worry about anypony seeing us, I've dismissed all the guards to the outer perimeter." A coat of dove-white, a mane and tail of many hues, golden shoes adorning her hoofs and a brilliant gold tiara upon her head, tucked right behind a long, slender, and lethally pointed horn, Princess Celestia strode in through the entrance with a regality befitting her standing. "Hello, human, I believe you are the one Lady Reyes calls 'Jessie'?"

Jessie merely nodded, looking up at the pony who stood a head taller than him, words failing to leave his mouth. Without alcohol as a catalyst, he couldn't seem to express himself in the same manner that he did last night. He took a small step back once he witnessed Princess Celestia's horn glowing bright yellow, which brought forth a droplet-covered beer bottle which levitated right in front of him.

"You left this on a shelf in the Archives," Princess Celestia stated sternly. "You do know the ramifications if somepony else came across this right?"

Again, Jessie could only nod.

Princess Celestia raised an intrigued eyebrow. "You're surprisingly silent. My sister claims that you were rather vocal last night."

"Uh, ah, yeah, well… uh…" Jessie glanced at the bottle floating in front of him, noticing it was still half-full. He snatched it from the air eagerly and tossed his head back, hastily downing the remnants of the revoltingly warm liquid. When he finished he let out a disgusted grimace before wiping the excess liquid form his lips with the back of his hand. "Okay, that should help."

"My sister had also informed me you were intoxicated last night, should I expect alcoholism to be a problem from you?"

"Listen here, princess," Jessie pointed a dramatic finger at Princess Celestia, "from last night up until this morning, I have been completely and utterly uninformed about everything and expected to accept everything as fact without so much as an explanation as to what's going on and why." Jessie peeked into the bottle and upon seeing it was empty placed it onto the ground.

Princess Celestia looked at him incredulously. "Wait a second, you haven't been told _anything_? If so, then why are you here?"

Jessie scratched his cheek nervously, feeling a small amount of anger in Celestia's words. "Eh, Mindy kinda tricked me into saying yes to a question that would require me doing anything to protect, and I quote, 'my sister's favorite fictional world'."

Celestia let out an exasperated sigh. "So I take it you want an explanation?"

Jessie looked up in exultation, as if praising the heavens. "Yes, thank you, it'd be much appreciated."

After a half-hour of in-depth explanation, a process that would of have been shorter were it not for the myriad of questions that Jessie asked, Princess Celestia had managed to provide Jessie with the information needed for him to understand the situation. Now, Jessie sat on the steps leading up to Celestia's throne, his chin on the back of his laced fingers as he digested the information he received.

If he were to offer his help, he would stay in Equestria whilst maintaining the form of an Earth Pony, because chances are he might hurt himself should he decide to goof off as a Pegasus or a Unicorn. His primary purpose is to disable a machine in a continent across the ocean to the west that can only be operated by humans. The machine would take a year to power up and is located in an ancient human city protected by a barrier that is deemed to fail a few months short of a year. Though he may remain relatively safe during the months prior to the barrier failing, once his help is needed, his life would be at risk as he would become Baade's primary target should his presence become known.

"So, now knowing the danger you might be in, would you still be willing to help Equestria?" Princess Celestia asked tentatively.

Jessie leaned back and looked up at the ceiling whilst using his hands to prop himself up. He let out a disgruntled mumble before answering. "I'm familiar with danger, not zap-now-I'm-a-mouse kinda danger, but life and death situations aren't foreign to me." Jessie then looked at Princess Celestia expectantly and raised his finger. "That said there's one condition I have. Allow it, and you'll have me."

Princess Celestia contemplated him thoughtfully. "Fair enough, Jessie, what is your condition?"

Jessie stood up, making sure to look Princess Celestia in the eyes. "If, I'm going to stay here, I'd like my sister to stay with me."

Princess Celestia didn't acknowledge Jessie's request right away, instead choosing to continue to look at him. Though unnerved, Jessie stared right back at her. A minute passed before Princess Celestia decided to speak. "…Curious."

"W-what?" Jessie managed to stammer out, clearly having lost the stare-down.

"You have rather dangerous eyes."

"I don't know what-"

"Clearly you do," Celestia interjected, her eyes narrowing. "It's obvious you made it a point to look me in the eyes. Were you trying to intimidate me?"

"Well-"

"I would understand why ponies, or in your case, people, would feel daunted by such a gaze," Princess Celestia went on. "You were a being immersed in a world of darkness, barely coming out of it with your sanity, your humanity, intact. Such an experienced has been etched deep inside you and easily viewable through the windows of your soul."

_Bump. _Jessie's backside hit the wall as he slowly backed away from Princess Celestia who continued to advance on him, a process that Jessie didn't notice despite it having been done over the length of the conversation.

"Anger, betrayal, corruption… death, you've experienced it all, haven't you?"

"I don't want to talk about this anymore, Princess."

"Did you come here to run away, perhaps? Escape the troubles of your world?"

A menacing growl escaped from Jessie and a tiger's glare appeared on his face. Despite Jessie's hostile change in demeanor, Princess Celestia still continued to goad him on.

"To run away from such petty things, you're quite the coward, aren't you?"

"Shut up!" Jessie's hand shot out and wrapped itself around Princess Celestia's neck. At the same time, his hand was encapsulated in a yellow aura and he looked up to see Princess Celestia's horn glowing. Though he was grasping her neck, his grip was tenuous at best, the magic that Princess Celestia used prevented him from clenching any tighter. In stark contrast to what was now Jessie's feral snarl, a satisfied grin slowly crept on to Princess Celestia's face.

"A little more violent than I would prefer, but I like your conviction. Your condition has been accepted."

"I'm gonna ki- wait, what?" The magic that had encompassed Jessie's hand dissipated and with the heat of the moment having worn off, Jessie's grip loosened and fell by his side as he looked away, red with shame. "Sorry, I don't know what came over me…"

"There's no need for apologies," Princess Celestia stated as she began to walk away from him, as if nothing had happened. "After all, I was intentionally provoking you."

"You were testing me?" Jessie asked, his chest heaving as he took deep breaths.

"Yes. If you were the type to attack one such as me merely out of hurt pride, I'm sure you would try much harder should something you care about be on the line." Princess Celestia stopped walking right by the exit. "The crystal is currently behind the throne. Give my regards to Lady Reyes when you return."

"Princess, wait, please."

Princess Celestia turned and looked at Jessie inquiringly. "Yes?"

"From what you told me, aside from the obvious exceptions, everybody, er I guess in this case, everypony else would be uninformed about the whole reappearance-of-Baade thing, right?"

Princess Celestia nodded. "But of course, by now I'm sure my subjects are quite exhausted with world-threatening danger."

"Well," Jessie twiddled his fingers sheepishly, "I was wondering if my sister could also be kept out of the loop too."

Princess Celestia looked up contemplatively. "Hm, I suppose that's possible, although the responsibility to would fall on me to fabricate a reason as to why you're staying here. How old is your sister?"

"She's seven."

"So be it, anything else?"

"I'm going to need some time to-"

"You have three days." With that, Princess Celestia left the throne room, leaving Jessie to wonder what he had gotten himself into.

* * *

The sun had just begun to ascend, spreading its light and sharing its warmth across the land that is Equestria. It's rays had managed to pierce through the window embedded into the side of a large oak tree, basking a violet Alicorn mare, who had been lying in bed, with its luminosity. As the sunlight streaked across her face, she shielded her face with a leg, and groaned.

It had been three days since Twilight last spoke with her friends, a memory that continued to trouble her as she began to recall Fluttershy's wrath. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy made it quite plain to her that they didn't want a human coming to Equestria and helping them. And Though she didn't hear any dissent coming from Rarity, Pinkie Pie, or Apple Jack, she was sure that they were sympathetic towards the Pegasi's feelings.

Twilight herself was rather uneasy about the situation as well, though it was outweighed by the amount of trust she had in the princesses decisions. The sound of rumble and clatter prevented her from getting any more sleep and with disgruntled bleariness did she roll out of bed. She looked out the window, finding the source of the commotion to be coming from a construction site not too far away. The building being put together was the new Ponyville Police Department, one the Ponyville council found appropriate to make ever since the population increase.

Twilight descended the stairs down to the public section of the library and towards the exit. She was welcomed by the majesty of the summer morning, heralded by the singing of birds that flew within the clear sky. A playful breeze teased her hair as she tread upon crisp verdant blades of grass, making a beeline towards the construction site. As she neared it, she saw another mare with a tan coat, and a grey mane and tail, wearing a pair of spectacles and a white collar around her neck adorned with a turquoise ruffle.

"Good morning, Mayor Mare," Twilight greeted as she trotted up to the mayor. The mayor turned to her and gave her a deep, respectful bow before answering back.

"And a good morning to you, Princess Twilight, Have you come to observe the creation of the new Ponyville Police Department?" Mayor Mare gestured a presenting hoof towards the structure.

Twilight looked upon the building with awe, watching the construction ponies scuffle around the scaffolding that surrounded it. "It's amazing, and I'm surprised so much work has been done in just three days."

"Some form of law enforcement has been desperately needed for some time now," Mayor Mare stated as she gazed eagerly upon Ponyville's newest facility. "I know it's silly, but having this building is going to make things much easier. It'll not only serve as a rally point for those who uphold the law, but also as a symbol for justice and righteousness, and remind wrongdoers that there exists a force that will seek them out and give them what they deserve! And it's being created because of you."

"Hm?" Twilight looked at the mayor inquisitively. "Because of me?"

"You don't know?" Mayor Mare asked, returning Twilight's look of enquiry. "We received a large amount of grant money from the castle for the purposes of establishing a police department. In fact, we got so much of it that after initial expenses, we used the remainder to encourage the contractors to do the job quickly. Funny, I just assumed you were the reason we got the money."

Twilight gave the Mayor a nervous laugh. "I've only just become a princess; I don't think I'll be given control of such large quantities of money just yet."

Mayor Mare looked up contemplatively. "No, I suppose not. At the very least, were you involved with the selection of the Police Chief?"

Twilight shook her head in response. "Police Chief? I take it one is also being provided to you?"

"That's right," Mayor Mare nodded while giving Twilight a smile. "Aside from the obvious, which is leading the department, it'll be the Chief's responsibility to recruit and train our very first set of police officers."

"Is that right…" Twilight's mind began to weave the pieces of information she received together. Just three days ago, Ponyville received large sum of cash from Canterlot for the purposes of building a police department. Construction had started immediately and now, three days later, it was already almost complete. Four days ago she and Princess Celestia had just visited the Human world to ask for help…

It was a stretch, a _big _stretch, but Twilight couldn't help but feel a connection. Before she could ruminate any further, a rumble in the earth caught her attention and she looked down the road, finding the source to be none other than Spike, who sauntered through Ponyville casually on all fours. One could easily differentiate newcomer from long-time citizen from the way they reacted to Spike. Most waved and greeted the dragon as he passed by, to which he responded happily in return, though a few ran or tried to hide, these ones being the ones Spike tried his best to ignore.

"Hey, Twi, hi Mayor," Spike hailed as he made it to the two mares.

"Hello Spike, I suppose you're here to talk to the princess, I'll just excuse myself." Mayor Mare bowed her head respectfully once more before leaving.

Twilight acknowledged her with a nod before bringing her attention to Spike. "Thank you, mayor. So Spike, I see you made your way out of the forest and back into Ponyville."

"I duck in from time to time," Spike said. "There was a letter from the Princess; she wants you to head back to the castle."

"Was there anymore?" Twilight asked as she examined Spike's person curiously. "Where's the letter?"

"I walk on all fours Twi, I can't carry it, not unless you want it in my mouth." To make his point Spike opened his mouth, revealing a saliva-covered maw lined with jagged teeth along the upper and lower jaws. A stomach-churning metallic odor stemmed from within and made Twilight's eyes water.

"Eeugh," Twilight gagged. "Okay, I'll take your word for it, I'll go to the castle."

* * *

"_My little pony, my little pony, ahh ahh ahh ahhh…"_ Tiff's eyes were glued to the television, her arms wrapped around a pillow she hugged tightly and sunk her chin into as she sat on the lap of Mindy who brushed Tiff's hair. The two of them were on the bed closest to the door in Jessie and Tiff's hotel room. Outside on the veranda was Jessie, who conversed on his cell phone.

Mindy marveled at the color and feel of Tiff's hair, though as the brush traveled through it, it would occasionally snag. "Your hair is really beautiful Tiff, but its length is leaving it prone to knots. You ever think of cutting it?"

"Mmnoooope!" Tiff playfully said, still enamored by the television. "My brother said he likes girls with long hair!"

"Oh, I see." Mindy let out a half-hearted chuckle. "You're _that _kind of sister."

"And what's _that _supposed to mean?" Jessie asked as he stepped back into the room.

Mindy shrugged nonchalantly. "Nothing, just that she idolizes you a bit much."

"A _bit _much?" Jessie asked daringly. With that, Jessie hopped onto the bed, nearly knocking off Mindy and Tiff, and flexed his arms with machismo. "I'm the greatest brother in the world! No amount of adoration will ever be too much!"

Jessie's sudden burst of enthusiasm had gotten Tiff off Mindy's lap as she too began to bounce around on the bed with her brother.

_I guess Jessie's really excited to show his sister Equestria, huh? _Mindy noted as she got off the bed to avoid any accidents. She sat on the other bed and watched as Jessie began to twirl his sister around. _He turns into a different person around his sister_.

Jessie finished spinning his sister around and they collapsed on the bed, Tiff draped perpendicularly across her brother, stomach-to-stomach.

"So, Jess, when're we going to Disneyland?" Tiff asked as she pushed herself up.

Jessie smiled warmly at Tiff and ruffled her hair in a brotherly manner. "We're not going to Disneyland Tiff, we're going someplace _better_."

"You said I was going to meet a princess, where else would we meet one?" Tiff inquired, squeezing her brother's nose as if he were a clown.

"Europe and Asia, mostly," Mindy pointed out as she observed the amusing spectacle of a little girl treating a grown man like a plaything. Once she felt enough time had passed, Mindy gave Jessie an imploring look and gestured at the door with a slight movement of her head. Jessie understood the motion and got up from the bed.

"Hey Tiff, I got some things to do with Mindy. Would you stay here, watch the show and tell me what happens? I know you already saw it but I haven't yet and I wanna know every little detail."

Tiff nodded eagerly upon receiving her assignment. "Okay!"

Jessie and Mindy headed out into the hallway and into Mindy's room after she had placed a "do not disturb" sign on the knob.

"I've been meaning to give you this," Mindy said as she rummaged through her bedside desk drawer. She pulled out a golden hand-sized shield and tossed it at Jessie who deftly caught it.

He examined it with keen interest, taking note of the inscription on the front. "P.V.P.D? Is this a badge?"

"Yup." Mindy then pulled out a notepad and pen, looking over the checklist within. "Did you cancel all your utilities?"

"Yeah."

"Sorted out your taxes?"

"Yes."

Mindy made two checks in her notepad then nibbled the end of her pen curiously. "I know you're suspended, but what if your boss lifts your suspension? I'm pretty sure he'll want you to come in right away."

"Well, I told _her _that I was going to be seeing a shrink here in California and-"

"Actually," Mindy interrupted, "I live in New York. But you know what, it doesn't matter. I'll just-"

"Wait a sec," Jessie interrupted in turn. "It _does _matter. You're my means of correspondence with her. What if she traces your location when she calls you or e-mails you or whatever; how do you think she'll react if she finds out you're in New York when she thinks I'm in California?"

"I guess it means something bad for me," Mindy answered while bouncing anxiously on the balls of her feet. "Well what are you waiting for? Give her a call and say you made a mistake; I don't wanna go to jail!"

"Calm down, I'm calling her, I'm calling her." Jessie took out his phone and began to look for the Chief's name in his contact list. Before he made the call, he studied the badge once more and gave Mindy an inquiring glance. "Why'd you wanna give me this anyways? Obviously it's a police badge, P.D. is police department… I could use some context here."

Mindy sighed, took the badge from him, and pointed to the letters "P" and "V". "This badge is from Equestria, so what do you think the 'p' and the 'v' mean?"

"Oh, well now that I know it's from Equestria, the answer is blatantly obvious, isn't it? It's 'Ponyville'." Jessie took back the badge from Mindy. "But why would I need this badge?"

"You told Princess Celestia you didn't want your sister knowing the real reason why you're staying in Equestria, well, _there's_ your alibi." Mindy pointed definitively at the badge.

Jessie raised a skeptic eyebrow. "So I'm going to Equestria to be a Police Officer?"

"Eh, there's a little more to it than that, Princess Celestia will explain it to you more, now if you could just make that call." Mindy began to point insistently at his phone, prompting Jessie to roll his eyes and make the call.

* * *

It was a minute until noon, an hour had passed since Twilight arrived at the castle, and she, along with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna waited patiently in the throne room for the appearance of their human volunteer. Initially, Twilight had wanted to discuss the generous grant given to Ponyville, but after learning that the human helper would be coming, she changed her line of questioning to address the fact.

Princess Luna's description was worrisome, having been told by her that, "he was a drunken fool with a predisposition to overreacting and getting hit on the head with books".

Princess Celestia's description was far less critical, but seemed much more foreboding: "A skeptical young man who has seen and experienced far too much. Don't look him in the eyes when he's mad."

Neither description seemed ideal but a volunteer is a volunteer, and they weren't in a situation to turn away help if they could.

The sound of grand bells began to chime and signaled the arrival of noon.

"They're coming," Princess Luna said with bated breath. "Twilight Sparkle, whatever you hear, go along with it, okay?

Twilight nodded and as if on cue, a blinding light encompassed the entirety of the room and the Alicorns vision. Once Twilight's sight returned, she anxiously looked to the center of the room.

What she saw was unexpected and rather comical. Instead of one human, there were two, and neither was standing. The tall, masculine, black-haired one was lying face-down while the other one, a golden-haired, feminine small one, sat on top of him, looking around the room with wonderment. The man then groaned and lifted his head up, revealing his face upon which rested a pair of glasses with a shattered lens. The absurdity of the scene forced a chuckle out of Twilight which she attempted to stifle with a hoof.

The small sound she ended up making caught the attention of the little girl whose eyes snapped towards Twilight's direction. Momentarily, the two of them just stared at each other, Twilight completely unaware of the little girl's intentions. Twilight then decided to take the initiative.

"Uh, hi?" Twilight greeted as she gave the girl an awkward smile. An incredibly wide smile appeared on the little girls face and Twilight could make out moisture in her eyes. "Um, are you oka-"

"AAAAHHHHHHHH!" The girl let out an ear-piercing, gleeful shriek as she hopped off the man's back and ran towards Twilight. Before Twilight could react, the girl was already on the tips of her toes, her arms wrapped around Twilight's neck. The girl rubbed her face affectionately against Twilight's coat. "You're real… I didn't think you'd be real when he told me… You're soft too…"

Twilight now understood the being that hugged her was a child and reciprocated the youth's affections with a hug of her own. "That's right, it's nice to meet you. Your name is?"

"M'name's Tiff," the girl answered, her voice slightly muffled by Twilight's coat. Tiff then pulled away from Twilight slightly and looked up at her. "I bet you I know _your_ na-ame~"

Tiff's playfulness was infectious and Twilight found herself grinning empathetically. "I don't doubt it. Would you mind introducing me to your friend over there?"

By now, the man had gotten up and removed his glasses for inspection. He frowned despondently as his thumb rubbed over the shatter lens. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna approached him.

"Jessie's, it's a relief to finally have you in Equestria," Princess Celestia stated as she neared him.

"Yes, and it is nice to see you standing rather than in a catatonic state," Princess Luna added.

Jessie smirked at Luna, folded his glasses, and tucked them into his pocket. "Yeah well, so long as you use an inside voice, I should be fine."

"Princess Luna! Princess Celestia!" Tiff came into the group running, jumped, and wrapped an arm around each princess's neck, bringing the three of them into an awkward hug as Tiff dangled in mid-air. "You guys are real too!"

Jessie laughed nervously and removed Tiff from them, placing her back on her feet in front of him. "Yup, all the princesses are real, Tiff."

"She's certainly accepted the reality faster than you did," Princess Luna remarked as she gave Jessie a look.

Celestia nodded in agreement. "The naïveté of children, helping them accept amazing things as fact so readily, although in this case that's a good thing."

Tiff gave them a blank stare. "What's nay-ee-vay-tay?"

Twilight instinctively wanted to answer, though as soon as she opened her mouth, she noticed Princess Luna, Princess Celestia, and Jessie subtly shaking their heads. Luckily enough, Tiff didn't really care much for an answer and moved on to her next question.

Tiff tugged on Jessie's pant leg. "Jess, why're we here?"

Jessie quickly shot a glance at Princess Celestia with eyes that begged for assistance. Princess Celestia looked down at Tiff and gave her a gentle smile.

"Your brother… he's the new Police Chief of the Ponyville Police Department!"

Tiff let out an amazed gasp as Jessie eyes widened. _Oh hell no! _


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry for long update, was a little** **unmotivated**.

* * *

_Police Chief?! _Jessie was unable to hide his bafflement upon hearing the news. Twilight practically mirrored his expression and Princess Celestia quickly picked up on their bewilderment.

"Luna, why don't you show Tiff around the grounds? Dismiss as many guards as you need to."

"As you say, sister. Come along little one, I'm sure you're excited to see the castle in its entirety." Princess Luna offered Tiff the tip of her wing, and Tiff took it into her hand. Before they walked away, Tiff cast a hesitant look at Jessie. He nodded at her encouragingly and with a reaffirmed smile, she allowed Princess Luna to walk her out of the throne room.

Once Princess Luna and Tiff were out of the room, both Twilight and Jessie looked at Princess Celestia expectantly.

"Now I'm sure both of you would like to know what exactly going on-"

"I have some sort of idea," Jessie interrupted, "I'd just like to understand your reasoning. I mean, Police Chief? That's a pretty lucrative position."

"_Before_ we get to that," Twilight stressed before princess Celestia could answer Jessie's question, "Why are there _two _humans here? I thought we only needed one."

Princess Celestia gave her student a mystified look. "He appeared to be an ideal candidate, so when he proposed the condition that his sister must come with him, I was more than willing to oblige."

Twilight scrutinized Jessie after hearing Princess Celestia's answer, trying to find what made him so "ideal".

"And to answer your question, Jessie," Princess Celestia went on, "you said you wanted your sister to be 'kept out of the loop' to use your words, and as we established, the responsibility would fall on me to fabricate a story. I couldn't come up with something too inconsequential."

"So Ponyville gets a Police Department just to help him lie to his sister?" Twilight asked disbelievingly.

Celestia examined her student bemusedly. "I'm sensing some hostility. Are you angry at me for something?"

Twilight held off answering to look at Jessie anxiously. Jessie understood the message, turned around, and covered his ears.

"Princess," Twilight began, trying futilely to find the right words, "It's just that, I've been uninformed about what's been going on so far. The creation of Ponyville Police Department, the arrival of our human helper, the fact that he's bringing his sister… it's like you're intentionally withholding information."

"My precious student…" Princess Celestia approached Twilight and gently caressed her cheek with a wing tip. "Yes, I failed to tell you about what's been going on, but only because I know you've been tired ever since our encounter with Baade. I wanted you to relax while you were at home in Ponyville."

Twilight looked away somewhat ashamed. Of course Princess Celestia was thinking about her well-being, like she always was. "I'm sorry Princess Celestia. My anger has been… misappropriated. It's just that ever since my failure I-"

"Twilight, we've been over this," Celestia interjected, "it was not your fault, at the very least not yours alone. What you have to do is move on and not dwell on the past so that we may be better prepared to handle Baade next time."

Twilight cast another wary glance at Jessie who had now begun to hum to himself. "Would he really be able to help us?"

Princess Celestia looked at Jessie stoically. "We could only hope."

* * *

A hooded colt sauntered purposefully through the Everfree Forest, a shadow covering his face. The leaves on the trees were moistened with glistening droplets of dew, the soil was dark and rich, and life of the fungal kind prospered within the shadows of large plants. The animals of the forest, from the meekest of rabbits, to the ferocious manticores all took great lengths to avoid the colt, their base animalistic instincts telling them to fear for their lives.

The colt then came upon a bridge, bridging the gap that separated him from a ruined castle. Vines encroached upon its walls and ramparts as nature unyieldingly began to reclaim its place. The colt smirked at the discovery, his chest shuddering lightly as he suppressed a laugh.

"Yes… It's here… Get ready for round two, Celly…"

The colt crossed the shaky rope bridge and eagerly entered the castle, his laughter slowly surpassing his suppression into small chuckles. He made a small motion with his head, unveiling his horn from beneath his hood and used it as a sensor to pinpoint the source of the magical energy. His horn led him up a long flight of stairs going up into a tower. He then came upon a room much larger than he had expected, his eyes scanning for the source of the magical energy, though his horn told a different tale.

_That's odd, _the colt mused, his mouth tugging back into a disappointed frown. _The energy doesn't seem to be emanating from something but rather simply permeating throughout the entire room. _As he stepped deeper into the room, his eyes widened and he took it in a sharp intake of breath. _Something's here!_

The colt had frozen in place, his entire body tensed and unwilling to move. A secondary presence seemed to lurk within the shadows of the room, though his eyes failed to perceive any living being. Iciness seemed to envelope the colt's mind as booming thoughts that were not his own began to thunder within his conscience.

_WHO DARES INTRUDE UPON THE LAIR OF NIGHTMARE MOON?!_

The colt gritted his teeth, the thunderous voice within his head threatening to rupture his skull.

"You're going to make my head explode. Speak softly, or don't speak at all."

… _A cheeky one, aren't you? Do you understand the position you are in? My form may be gone, but so long as you're in this room, I can do with you as I please. _

_I have to think of something, quick. _"But you wouldn't dare do anything. No, not when I can put you back together." The colt's offer had momentarily silenced the voice, and he began to ponder whether the voice had ever existed. As the colt began to make a move, the voice sounded off once more.

_You're no pony. You're using magic to disguise yourself. Show me your true form and then we will talk. _

"How perceptive, fine then, I'll show you what I really am but I won't bother explaining it." The colt stood up on his hind legs before being basked in a shimmering light. A human entity had taken the colt's place and he stood with his arms crossed and his hood covering his face. He pulled back the hood, revealing his auburn hair, beard, and freckled complexion. Once more, the voice was silent, though this time the colt-turned-human waited patiently for a reaction.

_I had thought you were sealed away in the void, Baade. _

It was the second time Baade had been taken for a surprise during his visit. A low grumble began to reverberate within his chest as he began to ponder the worth of his excursion. "Who are you?"

_First you will tell me why you are here, and if I so much as sense a lie, I will end your life here! _

Baade's grumble turned into a growl, though he saw no other choice but to speak. "So be it. I'll start from the beginning…."

* * *

_Boing, boing, boing, boing. _A light green filly with a lusciously long blonde mane and tail bounded, skipped, and hopped merrily out of the back entrance of the Canterlot Castle. Her flank was blank and her long hair was kept together by a blue scrunchie near the end. Following her was a grey-coated colt with a darker grey mane that ran down from the top of his head to the base of his neck and was swept to one side in a traditional horse fashion.

He was also dressed in a suit, at least what would pass for a suit on a pony, with a red and black checkered tie. A pair of glasses rested on his face, though they were always at risk of falling for he ambled about like a newborn foal, tripping over his own hooves. Pinned unto his suit was a golden shield, matching the shields that decorated his flanks.

The filly doubled back to the struggling colt and pranced around him. "C'mon Jess! We'll never get to leave if you don't learn how to walk!"

"Sorry, Tiff… It's just so… compli-ah!" Jessie stumbled and fell, his glasses flying off his face. Tiff sighed, picked up the glasses with her teeth, and gingerly placed them back on Jessie's face. "Thanks, Tiff. Just how did you learn to walk so quickly?"

"I dunno!" Tiff shrugged. "I didn't really think about it all too much."

Jessie pursed his lips disbelievingly. "Seriously?"

"That advice is much sounder that it, well, sounds." The recommendation had come from Twilight who emerged out the castle after the two siblings. "You shouldn't be thinking about _how _you move, just do it."

Jessie pushed himself up and frowned at Twilight. "You can't just tell somebody-"

"Pony," Tiff corrected.

"Right. You can't tell some_pony_ not to think about something, or they'll end up thinking about it."

"Hmm…" Twilight regarded him contemplatively before a mischievous smile took hold of her face.

As her horn began to glow, Jessie took a nervous step back. "Um, what're you doing?"

"Oh… nothing… take that!" A violet beam shot out from Twilight's horn and Jessie barely managed to move his leg in time to avoid it. The spell left the earth it hit slightly scorched.

"Hey! What's that for?!" He shouted.

"You move fast," Twilight complimented. "Now let's just see how _well _you move." She fired another spell, this time aimed at Jessie's center mass. He had to dive to avoid the hit.

"Dammit, you're crazy!"

"Run, foal! Run!"

Jessie made a mad dash down the garden as Twilight took to the sky to fire weak spells down at Jessie. Tiff ran after her brother, jubilantly laughing as she maintained a safe distance from Jessie's rear-end while it continued to be the target of Twilight's impromptu walking, or rather running, lesson. From their vantage point in the castle tower Princess Luna and Princess Celestia watched the scene unfold, Princess Luna hardly capable of containing her mirth.

"You're grinning quite widely, Luna," Celestia noted as she glanced side-ways at her younger sister. "Do you really dislike the human so?"

Luna took the time to observe the spectacle more below before answering. Her smile faded away and she let out a soft sigh. "His first impression was… well, awful. He was rude, drunk, and boisterous. His stubbornness made it nearly impossible for him to accept reality-"

"Oh?" Celestia interrupted her ranting sister. "I would take his skepticism as a sign of intelligence."

Princess Luna scoffed at her sister's summation. "Intelligence? I saw nothing of the sort."

A knowing smile appeared on Princess Celestia's face, prompting her younger sister to raise an eyebrow. "Ah yes, you don't know."

"Know what?"

"The majority of my interactions with the human world had taken place prior to your return," Princess Celestia began, "and aside from letting you know of its existence, I've told you nothing else about it."

"To be fair I never asked," Princess Luna conceded. "Regardless, what is it that I don't know?"

Princess Celestia glanced further down the garden, spying Jessie as he finally hit his stride and took off like a wild mustang, leaving Twilight and his sister to eat his dust. "The world where they come from, there's no such thing as magic."

"What?" Luna asked disbelievingly, her eyes widening.

"Well, it's not as if the concept is foreign to them. It's just that in their world, magic merely exists in the realm of fiction."

Princess Luna looked down back at Jessie who was now at the far end of the garden, gasping for air as he lay down on the ground, clearly having tired himself out from running at full speed. Tiff bounced around him playfully as Twilight stood over him, bashfully rubbing the back of her head as she continued to apologize.

"So what you're saying is, this human had every right to be skeptical?"

"I wouldn't say _every _right," Celestia granted, "but it would have been illogical, at least from his world's perspective, to arrive at such a conclusion right off the bat."

Princess Luna grumbled and then turned away, walking towards the exit. "I suppose I could look upon him a _little _more favorably." She then went out the room, leaving Celestia to smile endearingly as she left.

"Haa… haa… haa…" Jessie's tongue lolled out of his mouth as he continued to gasp for air. A trail of burn spots led up to where he lay. Tiff sat down on her haunches, content that her brother had finally grasped the basic movement of a pony while Twilight fanned him with her wings. "Sheesh… a warning… would have been… nice…."

"A warning would have defeated the purpose of that exercise," Twilight dutifully explained. "The point was to get you to stop thinking, you know, get you to follow your instincts?"

"W-what did you say?"

"I said follow your instincts, y'know, to get you to walk better?"

Jessie could only stare blankly up at Twilight. Tiff looked curiously at her brother, whose eyes seemed to be staring straight through Twilight, who looked over him, and at something else.

_Jessie found himself lying down on a pier, staring blankly at an orange-tinted sky. The waves crashed softly against the wharf as the sun dipped down below the oceanic horizon, creating a sparkling, shimmering effect upon the Pacific's vista. His view of the sky was suddenly obstructed when a pretty face came into view, looking down on him observingly._

_The woman had tan skin and long black hair tied into a pony-tail. Hey eyes were grey and narrow, and her lashes were long and fluttery. She was dressed in a grey sports bra, revealing her well-toned abdominal muscles, and a matching pair of grey sweatpants. Her hands were wrapped in bandages. Beads of sweat rolled down from her neck, arms, and abs. _

_She reached down and gently caressed the purple blotch on Jessie's face. His face immediately contorted in pain and he brushed away her hand, letting out a mild grumble. His reaction made her purse her lips, cross her arms, and look down on him hopelessly. _

"_That's a pretty nasty bruise; why don't you atop holding back?"_

_The woman's suggestion had made Jessie snort derisively and he turned to his side, facing towards the ocean in order to look away from her. "I'll do whatever I want."_

_The woman puffed her face indignantly and started to prod Jessie in the back with the tip of her shoe. This provoked an aggravated growl for Jessie who then scooted away from her. She continued to jab at his back with her toe which made him inch closer to the edge. Once he was at the precipice, she planted her foot firmly on the small of his back. _

_Jessie reacted quickly and pushed her foot off before standing up. "The hell were you trying to do?!" _

_The woman smirked at him smugly. "You're fine letting some guy getting away with hitting you in the face, but when I think it would be a good idea for you to take dip, you yell at me?" _

"_Tch. As if he got away with it." Jessie turned away from her and sat back on the pier, this time dangling his legs lazily over the water. _

"_I guess not, though if you weren't so passive, you probably wouldn't have gotten hit." The woman took a seat next to him, hugging her knees as she gazed out into the sea. "You really do deserve the name Shaolin." _

_Jessie flicked a pebble into the water before answering. "I was hoping it wouldn't have come down to anything drastic." _

_An unladylike snort came out of the woman as she tried to stifle her laughter. "Hah! Yeah, that didn't work out very well for him now, did it?" _

_Jessie tensed momentarily, long enough for the woman to take notice. "What was that?"_

"_Nothing."_

"_It didn't look like nothing."_

"_They're here." Jessie pointed a finger towards the horizon, a yacht slowly looming into view upon it. _

"_Don't change the- oh you're telling truth. Fine, I'll let it go, for now." She stuck her tongue out at Jessie and stood up, waving towards the boat._

_A small scintilla of discontent began to sprout within Jessie as he watched the boat come in closer. _

"Jess?"

"Wha-huh?"

Jessie was now looking up at his sister's ponified face, her eyes watering and lips quivering.

"You okay, Jess?" Tiff asked as she leaned in closer to her brother. "You were just staring up at the sky for a few seconds."

Jessie stood back up on all fours, his legs wobbling slightly, and pressed a hoof against his temple, which had begun to throb furiously. "Yeah, I'm fine, just a small headache is all."

Twilight and Tiff looked at him doubtfully as Jessie tried to placate them with a meek smile.

"Seriously girls," he went on, "it's nothing. You just made me run a little too fast, Twilight."

Tiff quickly turned towards Twilight and pouted up at the stunned Alicorn, swiftly siding with her brother. "Yeah! You made him run too fast!"

Twilight could only smile nervously at the little filly while apologizing. "Yes, I suppose it's my fault." She cast a swift glance at Jessie who conveniently took a sudden interest in a nearby shrub.

"I think I got the hang of walking by now," Jessie said, still not looking at Twilight directly. "We should get going."

Twilight nodded and led the way for the two extra-terrestrials. She walked side-by-side with Jessie, who ambled slowly but surely, whilst Tiff bounded around them with expertise. She attempted to gauge his expression by looking at him through the corner of her eye, though his gaze was downcast, seemingly wanting to avoid eye contact.

_It was more than just a headache from running, _Twilight said to herself. _But what? _

* * *

"And after traversing the ocean, I kept my head low, restrained my magical resonance, and began to search for an ample and unguarded magical source so that I may replenish my powers." Baade then took a deep breath, his explanation having left him winded.

The voice let out an audible "hmm", perhaps to let him now that it was thinking. _You say you are currently drained of your powers, yet you took the incredible risk of coming to Equestria, when logic dictates you should have stayed in the old world and recuperated there. _

"I couldn't care less about what _logic dictates_," Baade enunciated venomously, "I'm not going to sit around while they plot and prepare. The best defense is a good offense, as those princesses so clearly demonstrated by coming to me first and the sooner I come to wreak havoc upon their kingdom, the better."

_As reckless as always. _

"You speak as if you know me," Baade noted aloud. "I still haven't received any information as to how you do."

_And as bold as always! What makes you think you are privy to such information? Continue to insult me if you wish, but understand that your life will be forfeit! _

Baade had to clutch is head with both hands as the voice raised its volume, as if he needed to prevent his head from splitting. "Dammit, you're yelling again. Do you want your body back or not?!"

_But of course I do. But what makes you think I'll let you live after you restore it? _

"Well, at the moment, I would presume my offer is the only thing that is keeping me alive," Baade retorted with a snort.

_And of course, to retract it would only lead to your swift and immediate demise. _

"Obviously."

_I suppose I could spare you. As emaciated as you are, I can perhaps not worry about you overpowering me. I might even have some use for you. But how exactly will you give me back my body? _

"Theoretically, by gathering your magical energy and compressing it, I should be able to see the shape your body is supposed to take. Then, using that as a guideline, I can fashion you a body out of the proper elements, and distill your essence into it."

_And if the elements are not at hand? _

Baade sighed and rubbed the center of his eyebrows with his index finger. "Assuming that you were an organic creature, which I'm absolutely positive you were, most of the elements I need can be pulled out of the air and from other living things nearby."

_And then I can be whole once more… I can take my revenge! I will show my weaker side the error of her ways… _My _ways… Well what are you waiting for? Begin the process at once! _

Rather than telling the voice to quiet down, Baade found it better to appeal to its desires immediately so that it will calm down. He extended his arms and used his fingers to direct the magic in the room towards the center, creating a swirling mist of night-blue energy. The energy then began to coalesce into a feminine Equine figure.

Baade took note of the wings and the horn, and grumbled to himself. "Of course, it had to be an Alicorn…"

As the body began to form, he began to watch it intently, taking note of its coat wingspan, mane and tail shape, horn length, and everything else. His lower jaw began to lower, leaving his mouth agape, and his eyes dilated once the body had reached completion.

_Well, what are you waiting for? Fuse me with my body! _

"This form…"Baade uttered, entranced by the long and slender pony-figure in front of him. It had long feathery wings, and its horn was long and lethally pointed. Her mane and tail resembled the night sky just like Luna's, and the mysterious pony's head was armored with an ornate platinum helm. The only thing the body lacked was color, it currently being an inanimate grey. "It can't be… Queen Serafina?"

_I believe I introduced myself to you as "Nightmare Moon". _

"But it can't be Queen Serafina," Baade said aloud, ignoring Nightmare Moon, "there's just no way. The only pony I know who would even come close to her appearance would be… Princess Luna?"

_I SAID MY NAME IS __**NIGHTMARE MOON**__!_

Baade was brought down to his knees as he let out an agonized groan. "If my head bursts you won't be getting your body back…"

_To be identified as somepony as weak as __**Princess Luna**__, be glad I did not set you ablaze on impulse, human! Now implant me within my new body at once. _

Baade grumbled resentfully and pushed himself up. He approached the Alicorn's body which was suspended off the floor, its hooves an inch away from the ground. He touched its chest with his index and middle finger where a faint glow briefly emerged before dissipating. From the contact point, color began to wash over its greyish hues, revealing the Alicorn to be jet-black. Then she opened her eyes, ceasing to levitate as her hooves, armored in ornamental silver greaves, touched upon the floor.

"Huzzah!" The mare proclaimed, striking a gallant pose. She then began to strut about the room as she relished in her newfound movements. "Nightmare Moon has been reborn! Yes, this is the kind of body that befits my standing! Simply existing in the confines of some room is no way of living for a pony of my stature." Nightmare Moon then turned her attention to Baade who looked at her amusedly. "And why do you look upon so impudently, _human?_"

Baade chuckled softly before answering. "I'm just charmed by the fact that some presumably all-powerful Alicorn is skipping about like foal."

"Presumably?!" Nightmare Moon was upon Baade in a flash, her horn pressing against his jugular. "It seems you have forgotten the predicament you were in earlier or the predicament you currently are in now."

"Let's not fight, Nightmare Moon," Baade suggested as he pushed her horn away from his throat. "I'm sure that you may have noticed that you don't feel as powerful as you were in your… previous state. Obviously I did not have the energy to use the magic to create your body, so I had to pull it from another source."

"From me," Nightmare Moon stated as she glared at Baade. "You offered to give me a body and then used my power as fuel for the spell. Then once I was implanted into my new body-"

"We'd be standing in front of each other as equals," Baade completed, a smug smile pushing his cheeks upwards.

"A clever ploy," Nightmare Moon bitterly acknowledged, "but it won't stop me from doing away with you as I would wish."

Baade raised his hands out in front of him defensively. "Now now, just earlier you were lecturing me on what logic dictates. Clearly, what logic dictates now is that we leave each other alone and have an amicable good-bye. There's no guarantee that you are in a better condition than I am, and even if you were, it's pretty much a given you're going to expend a lot of energy and even sustain injuries in order to just 'do away with me', to use your words."

"As if I could just let you leave," Nightmare Moon snapped.

Baade let out yet another sigh and ran his fingers through his hair. "And, once again, you speak as if you know me, yet I still know not of your identity. But it matters little to me now. My tiny excursion here seems to be a wasted exercise, at least for me, I can imagine it was an incredible stroke of luck for you, and I shall be going."

Baade turned his back to Nightmare Moon and descended down the stairs, his head low and his shoulders hunched over. Nightmare Moon watched his exit with a dismal expression before approaching a nearby window and looking out. The sight of the morning light put a small snarl on her face.

_It is time for eternal night to fall upon Equestria. _

Baade descended the stairs slowly, his eyes barely noting the positions of the steps as he was lost in his thoughts. _A seemingly unfruitful venture, though not entirely for naught. This mysterious Alicorn, who looks so much like the princesses mother, seems to hold a grudge on Princess Luna, I can only assume she holds some hatred as well for Celly. _

As he reached the end of the flight of stairs, a malicious laugh could be heard from above him, and he looked back up the stairs with an equally malevolent smile. _Yes, it would seem this was a trip worth taking_.

* * *

"I'm baking a cake, I'm baking a cake, I'm baking cake as I'm making this cake!" The poorly put together impromptu melody was sung by Pinkie Pie as she eagerly peered into the oven's window, waiting for the cake to appear ready with her expert eye. As Pinkie Pie observed the cake bake, Applejack, who was at the counter behind her, started to apply frosting to a tray of cupcakes. Rarity was also among them, using her magic to wield a knife which began to chop strawberries into halves.

"Darling, do you really have to sing such an unpracticed descant?" Rarity asked as Pinkie Pie continued to spout off verses that no longer seemed to apply to the task at hand.

"Because frogs go hoppity hoppity- hm? Well of course you silly head! I'm making a cake so I gotta sing the baking a cake song!"

"It don't seem to be about cakes no more," Applejack remarked as she placed the now frosted cupcakes aside for another, unfrosted batch. "Is that cake about finished?"

"It will be, right about… nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn…"

Applejack and Rarity exchanged mystified glances as Pinkie Pie continued to pronounce her "n".

"Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnow!" Pinkie Pie popped open the oven and Rarity levitated the cake and the pan it was in onto the counter. Pinkie pie inserted a toothpick into the center of the cake and pulled it out, finding it to be clean.

"Your eyes're as good as ever Pinkie."

"Thanks AJ! Oh, and thanks girls for coming over and helping me prepare for this party at a moment's notice!"

"'Twas not an imposition at all," Rarity welcomed. "Though we received the letter from Twilight just hours ago I believe it's important that our honored guest feel welcome coming into our society. It's a shame that Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy didn't want to come."

Applejack nodded in agreement. "Those two are a pair o' mules with wings. But ah'm supposin' they have their reasons."

"But we mustn't be so prejudicial," Rarity cautioned. "After all, how bad could this individual be if he's willing to risk his life for a world he has no attachment to?"

"Twi's letter did say he was gonna be the Ponyville's Police Chief, did'nit?" Applejack asked as she began frosting the unfrosted batch of cupcakes before her. "Sounds like a mighty fine perk ta me."

Before they could discuss their visitor's motivations any further, the sound of approaching hooves caught the trio's attention and prompted them to silence. Mrs. Cake, with her frosting-like mane then poked her head into the kitchen, giving the girls a warm smile.

"Hello dearies, is everything going swimmingly?" She asked them.

"Everythin's fine n' dandy Mrs. Cake," Applejack answered, saluting with the frosting spatula.

"Mayor Mare has heard about the arrival of Ponyville's new Police Chief and would like to know if there's anything she and the other residents of the town could help with," Mrs. Cake went on to inform them. "She was quite startled to find out that he was coming at last minute, and believes that such an esteemed individual should have a more welcoming reception."

"We're going to need to prepare more food…" Rarity glumly noted as she examined what was basically a paltry fare for the whole town.

"There's no need to worry about that," Mrs. Cake assured her. "If need be, I'll just pull some product of the shelf, I'm sure my husband will be okay with it as well. After all, it _is _the Police Chief we're talking about.

Pinkie Pie bounded over the kitchen counter and embraced Mrs. Cake tightly. "Thank you so much Mrs. Cake! With the food sorted out I can help with the other preparations; I know! We can hold the party at the new Police building! Just need balloons, music, steamers…" Pinkie Pie went on and on as she pranced out of the kitchen, talking to no pony in particular.

"You two should go help her," Mrs. Cake suggested. "I'll finish up here and bring the rest over in a bit."

"Thank you Mrs. Cake," the duo chimed in unison as they pranced after Pinkie Pie.

The town had begun to bustle with activity right in front of the new police building. Picnic Tables were being pushed and set in front upon which the many baked goods delivered by Mr. and Mrs. Cake were set. Mayor Mare provided orders to idle ponies but was momentarily stymied when a colt came over with a cartload of empty apple buckets.

"Oh? What's this?" she asked the colt who panted as if he was pulling more than just apple buckets. Before the colt could answer the question, the multitude of apple buckets were sent flying as Pinkie Pie revealed herself from beneath them, her front legs raised high in the air dramatically.

"They're for apple bobbing of course, Ms. Mayor!" Pinkie Pie stated a-matter-of-factly, hopping off of the cart.

Mayor Mare gave the party pony a skeptic eyebrow. "Apple bobbing? I don't believe that to be appropriate. We're welcoming a venerated individual into our community, not celebrating Nightmare Night."

Pinkie Pie stared at the mayor blankly before nodding understandingly. "Oh yeah! Silly me! How could I forget? The savior of Equestria is coming! He's – mmmfffmffrghhgh-"

Pinkie Pie's mouth was then suddenly muffled by Applejack and Rarity, who clamped their hooves over Pinkie Pie's mouth and smiled at the mayor sheepishly.

"Savior of Equestria?" the mayor inquired.

"Er, ah, what Pinkie Pie meant to say…" Applejack began, though didn't know how to continue.

"By 'savior of Equestria', of course…" Rarity added, but was also at a lost for an explanation.

"Ya see, Pinkie here was just ah…"

"Over-exaggerating just a bit…"

"Cuz, ya know, ha ha, that's Pinkie!"

The mayor looked upon the trio suspiciously but her attention was then diverted when a large crash was heard behind her. "Oh for heaven's sake! It appears termites have gotten into the tables now they're crumbling! We must get new tables! Quickly, quickly, before he arrives!"

Rarity and Applejack let out relieved sighs as their hooves fell from Pinkie Pie's mouth which swollen slightly from the sudden impact of their hooves upon it.

"Owie…" Pinkie Pie whimpered as she tenderly massaged her lips with her hooves. "My mouf hurts…"

"We wouldn'a had ta do that if ya just kept your gob shut about that 'savior of Equestria' bit," Applejack reprimanded in a sheer whisper.

Rarity looked over her shoulder to make sure the mayor was no longer in ear shot. "Remember, Pinkie, this individual's true identity must remain a secret, to everypony else, he's just the Police Chief, and nothing more, understand?"

Pinkie Pie nodded and began to run her tongue all over her lips in an effort to reduce the swelling.

High above Ponyville, resting upon a cloud and staring down unfavorably upon the town's recent activity, was Rainbow Dash, a slight scowl on her face.

"Look at them down there, preparing a party for some no-good human."

"Ah, umm, would you be talking to me, Rainbow?"

Rainbow Dash looked behind her, seeing Fluttershy hovering above the cloud she lay on. "Fluttershy, when'd you get there?"

Fluttershy placed her hoof on her chin ponderingly. "I would say a few minutes ago… maybe… Not that I needed your attention right away… although I do wish to speak with you…"

"Stop being so cagey, Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash ordered as she waved a hoof dismissively, "what do you need?"

Fluttershy lowered herself down on Rainbow Dash's cloud and looked away from Rainbow Dash. "Well…I was just wondering, maybe we could… Oh never mind, I don't think I could…"

Rainbow Dash let out a long, exasperated sigh. "Would you let it out already?"

"Well, it's just that the whole town is helping out for the new Police Chief's welcome party and-"

"You do know who the chief _actually _is," Rainbow Dash interjected. "It's some good –for-nothing human!"

"Even so…" Flutter attempted to argue, avoiding eye contact and shyly kicking at the cloud, "I really think we should help out…"

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Oh sure, help throw a party for someone else who probably wants to end our way of life! Did you forget what Baade did to Discord?"

"Of course not!" Fluttershy snapped, causing Rainbow Dash to be taken aback. Fluttershy then blushed and looked down apologetically before continuing her explanation. "It's just that… we've learned this lesson before, you know, with Princess Luna… We shouldn't be so judgmental…"

Rainbow Dash pressed her lips together tightly and growled. Fluttershy was right of course, but Baade's impression ran deep. She flipped unto her back and shut her eyes, now not seeming to care about what was happening below.

"Fine, do whatever you like."

Fluttershy could only frown disappointingly at Rainbow Dash before slowly descending down towards the town.

* * *

The wind ruffled through Jessie's newly acquired mane as he rode on the carriage that flew through the sky, pulled along by a pair of armored Pegasi. Tiff looked eagerly over the side of the carriage, watching the landscape beneath them. Not wanting her to fall, but was unfortunately lacking any hands, Jessie was forced to bite into Tiff's tail should she unwittingly tumble off the edge of the carriage. Twilight sat across from the two and observed Jessie's trepidation with humored interest.

"Look Jess! I think that's the Everfree Forest down there!" Tiff pointed a hoof earthwards.

"Dat's bery nithe Tibf," Jessie answered through clenched teeth which pinched down upon Tiff's golden tail.

"You shouldn't worry too much," Twilight assured him, "these Pegasi are the best at handling flying carriages; your sister will be fine."

Jessie gave Twilight a diffident glance. "Mm, erkey…" Jessie opened his mouth, allowing the saliva-covered strands of ponytail to fall out of his mouth before he looked down and raised his hooves in front of his eyes. "I miss having fingers..."

Twilight softly giggled at his yearning. "I'm sure you do. Spike brags about having them all the time. Oh, Spike is-"

"Your assistant," Jessie completed for Twilight.

"A dragon!" Tiff enthusiastically chimed in.

Twilight gave the two a nervous laugh. "It's almost eerie how you two know so much about us."

"Bro, look!"

"Tiff, please don't lean too far on the edge."

"Seriously! Just look!"

Jessie sighed and went to the edge of the carriage, making sure to step on Tiff's tail to secure her onboard.

"Jess, right there, is that what I think it is?"

Jessie looked where Tiff pointed and a smile slowly crept up on his face. "Yeah. It's Ponyville."


End file.
